Bound by Bonds
by The-Reject-Crayon
Summary: Jasdebi has taken a break from hunting Cross to hunting Innocence. But that's not the only thing they find when they return to their hometown... JasdebixOC COMPLETE.
1. Perverts and Waitresses

My first ongoing D.Gray-man fic. Hope I can keep up with it. Enjoy.

**Warning**: If you hate OCs, you'd best not read. You might end up tearing your hair out or something.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own D.Gray-man. The only thing that's mine are any OCs.

* * *

It was raining, the day they got back. You could close your eyes and hear the soft 'splash' of the water falling on the stone street. A cool mist hung in the air, as did the silence of the town. This was the place.

Everything here was wet in the early spring. Almost dangerously so. Floods were not too uncommon. But somehow, the two felt more at home here than anywhere else.

Perhaps that was because it was where they had grown up.

There was a soft chorus of swears from the two as the rain suddenly picked up; this too, didn't surprise them much. The twins simply put up the hoods of their jackets and stared on.

"Debitto?" a small voice asked. The black haired twin turned to the blond.

Jasdero continued. "Why are we here, Debitto?"

The black haired Noah mumbled his response. "You know why we're here… The Earl told us to look for Innocence here."

There was silence from his twin.

"But, Debi… Why _here_?"

But his brother did not have an answer for him.

* * *

"Oi, Cassie, can you take the trash out?" a voice called through the kitchen of the restaurant. A slender, blond haired girl looked up and grimaced.

"Eh, why me? Isn't that Toko's job?" she called back.

"Toko's busy with customers. Hurry, we're really busy today."

The blond woman let out a sigh, and stared with annoyance at the pile of trash bags in the corner. "So we meet again, garbage…" she muttered, and picked them up to dump them out back.

After she had finished her task of disposing of the offending junk, she glanced up at the bit of sky she could see above the ally walls. For the first time in three days, the sun had decided to show, and though it was still wet, the rain had stopped and it was warming up a bit.

"Finally…" she muttered to herself. She was about to go back inside the restaurant, when she stopped, feeling the presence of someone, or something, watching her.

She quickly turned around, staring off into the darker parts of the ally. In the small village, almost everyone knew each other, and people didn't pass through very often. There weren't such things as muggers or thieves, and one didn't have to worry about being alone past dark like you would in other, larger towns. But then why did she get the feeling that she should be worried now?

After waiting, and neither seeing nor hearing anything, she shrugged and turned around. Probably nothing.

But then she heard it. A wolf-whistle, a laugh, and before she could turn around she felt the cloth of her short skirt being turned up. She let out a gasp of surprise and embarrassment, her face burning red, and whipped her head around, but the two boys were already running away laughing their heads off.

Cassie just stood there for a moment, her face burning with rage and shame, while she stared at where the two had disappeared. A black-haired boy and a long haired blond boy. The strangest part being that she didn't recognize them. In a town that small, you would have seen every member at least once, even if you didn't know them by name.

But she did not know those two, and it worried her.

"Oi, Cassie, what's taking so long?" a soft voice called, and a long, black-haired girl poked her head around the door. "Manager said we're busy…" her voice trailed off when she saw how flustered her older blond friend was.

"Cassie, what's wrong?" the girl asked, concerned.

Cassie turned to her. "Hey, Toko? Do you know two boys around your age with short black hair and long blond hair?" she asked.

Toko blinked. "No…" she said slowly. "What happened? You looking to pick up some guys?"

Cassie gave her an annoyed look. "No." she said, and explained what had happened. Toko listened with concern, until she had finished.

"I wonder who they could be… Anyway, maybe we'll ask around and warn some of the other girls about them… Perverts like that shouldn't be left unchecked." Toko said with a strong smile. Cassie grinned.

"Yeah. I'll talk to Manager about it."

"And if you see them again, yell for me. I'll come and kick their little asses for you." Toko said seriously. Cassie giggled.

"The image of you kicking boys' asses in your waitress uniform is one that would have _anyone_ laughing." her friend said, making Toko frown.

"What? I could _so_ beat them up! It's just a couple of boys my age, right? I could go through five or ten of them before breakfast!"

Cassie waved her hand, dismissing the subject. "Right, right. C'mon, we have to get back to work or Manager will yell at us again."

Toko grinned. "Right."

* * *

Back in another empty ally, the twins were hooting with laughter.

"Did you see her face? She was _so_ not expecting that!" Debitto said through his fits of laughter.

"Yeah! Nice panties too." Jasdero giggled, which only made the two laugh harder.

"This job ain't so bad after all. We look for some Innocence, goof off, and we don't have to worry about finding that stupid General." Debitto said, grinning.

"That was Cassie, right?" Jasdero asked, finally calming down, but still grinning.

"Yeah. Man, Jas', did you see how much she's _grown_?" Debitto asked, whistling as he outlined the curves of a woman's body in the air. Jasdero burst out laughing again.

"You guys aren't doing your job right, you know." A deep voice said from behind them. The twins whipped their heads around to stare at the speaker.

"You saying you could do any better?" Debitto growled, making a rude hand gesture at the older, curly haired Noah.

"Not better. Faster." Tyki Mikk said with a sigh as he lit a cigarette. "You two can't play here forever. The Earl wants you to make it quick so you can get back to your other mission."

Debitto growled again. "Yeah, yeah…" he muttered.

Tyki inhaled deeply, and slowly exhaled smoke. "And besides, I like women more like _this_." he said as he outlined a figure with even bigger breasts and a larger hip curve.

The twins were silent for a moment before they burst out laughing again. Tyki grinned. He didn't usually get along with the little monsters, but they had their moments.

"You guys got it? I don't want to have to babysit you two." he said, more seriously.

Debitto wiped tears of laughter from his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. We got it."

"And try not to get too attached to anything."

The twins nodded simultaneously. It was something he didn't have to warn them about.

"Right, see you." And with that the older Noah gave them a quick wave as he phased through the wall behind him, leaving the twins alone once more.

R&R, please.


	2. A Past Forgotten

Wow, second chapter up already. I got such good feedback from the first chapter that I quickened my pace to do the second one. Thanks to everyone who favorited and reviewed. You're awesome! -grins-

And, please forgive me, so little is knows about the Noah awakening process, with only info we have on it being Skin's, this is what I came up with.

Disclaimer: The usual. No ownage. (Damn)

* * *

_It was dark and wet. Tears stained the boys' dirty faces as they stared up in fear at the men surrounding them. It hurt. Everything hurt. And the blood wouldn't stop. _

_It oozed down their faces from the cross shaped cuts on their foreheads, both wounds identical to the other's. The only thing about the two brothers that was physically identical. _

_It was like a scene out of a nightmare. But it was real. The cold gazes of the men froze them to the core with fear, and all they would do was cry and tremble. _

"_Monsters…" came a hiss from one of the men. Someone threw a rock, and it missed the blond boy's head by a few inches, smashing against the brick wall, and making him yelp and cling to his black haired brother._

"_It's a curse…" someone else murmured. "We must get rid of the cursed…"_

"_For the sake of our village."_

"_For our sake…"_

_Why was this happening? They hadn't done anything. They were the ones in pain, the ones facing the nightmares. The ones being punished._

_Somewhere a woman was crying. "They're just children… Only children…" she murmured, over and over, staring at the two pitiful boys. They stared up in hope at her, that maybe someone would listen to her, save them. But the man standing next to her simply took her hand and led her away, whispering things concerning curses and the appeasing of Gods._

_Why were they God forsaken creatures? Why them? Why… Why were they…_

"_Stop!" a voice screamed, and several people turned their heads in surprise, while others ignored it._

_A small, black haired child pushed her way through the crowd towards the two boys, tears streaming down her face. "Stop… Leave them alone!" her high-pitched voice pleaded. Before she could reach them, she was pulled back by one of the men._

"_Let go! Let me go, you brute!" she struggled in vain, and cast a fearful glance at the two boys. "Jasdero! Debitto!"_

_The man yanked her harshly, causing her to cry out in pain._

"_You wouldn't understand. A child like you wouldn't understand what we have to do." he said._

"_No! I don't understand!" the girl yelled, still struggling to free herself. The man let go, and she ran to the side of the twins, who just stared at her with blank eyes numbed by the pain._

"_I don't understand…" she whispered, planting herself in a protective position in front of the boys. "I don't understand why you have to do these horrible things… They didn't do anything!" her voice rising to scream at the crowd._

_Her voice quieted, and she turned to bury her tearstained face in the shirt of the black haired twin, who reached out to cling to her shirt._

"_I hurts… it hurts…" he whimpered, resting his bloodstained forehead against her shoulder. He was trying his best to not cry, but by then the pain was making it hard not to scream, let alone cry. The blond haired twin was leaning against his brother, sobbing and clutching his forehead._

"_Tch." The man who had previously stopped her made a disgusted face, and grabbed the girl by her long black hair. She let out a cry of pain, her clear blue eyes filling with fresh tears._

"_Any friend of a demon is a demon itself." he grunted. The girl screamed as his foot collided with her side, sending her to her knees. Several people murmured, and a few let out gasps, but none did anything to stop the violence._

"_S-stop…" the dark haired boy stuttered out. "She's got… nothing to do with anything." Even talking was painful, a task. The blond was sobbing harder now._

_The man yanked the child by her hair to stand. "So even a monster will stand up for those of its kind, huh?" he sneered. He turned his head to stare at a woman approaching the crowd._

_"Oi!" he called, "This bitch yours?" he asked, holding out the child and making her cry out in pain again._

_The woman, with dark hair and even darker eyes, drew nearer and stared at the child. She showed no emotion towards her pain except annoyance and disgust._

_"I told you not to go outside." she hissed, making the girl flinch. "Trying to help monsters…"_

_The man let go and shoved her towards the woman, while many people, the twins included, watched in silence. Even the sobbing Jasdero had quieted down._

_The slap echoed through the stone streets, as did the child's whimper of pain. The girl staggered back, her hand on her cheek, while the woman advanced._

_"How many times have I told you to stay away from those monsters?" her screams tearing apart the silence. "A worthless child like you should at least be able to follow simple orders like that!"_

_The girl sobbed, still trying to get away from the woman. "But mother-"_

_The woman hit her again, harder this time, sending the girl to the ground. Her sobs were the only sound to be heard other than her mother's harsh breathing._

"_Stop… please stop…" she cried._

_The woman grabbed her by her hair, threatening to rip it out. "Worthless girl, just do as I say!"_

_And before anyone knew what was happening, the sleeve of the woman's shirt was aflame, and she stared at it for a moment in shock and horror, before she reacted. She screamed, beating the flame with her hands, before someone from the crowd reacted and used their jacket to beat at the flames. Someone else ran for water, while others just watched._

_Before long, the flames had been doused, but people still stared in confusion and shock as the woman panted. Then, slowly, she turned her head, and stared at the two boys huddled against the wall._

_But it was different now. Both were standing up and breathing hard, no longer crying, and stared with furious, golden eyes at the woman. The woman's eyes widened, and she began to advance._

"_You!" she screamed, "Monsters, demons!" she spit. "You did that!"_

_Neither twin looked away. "Keep your filthy hands off her, you bitch." They said simultaneously. _

_The woman would have attacked then if the man in front had not stopped her. "This is our job." he grunted. "Take your brat back home."_

_The woman spat on the ground, glared at the twins with hateful eyes, and turned to harshly grab the arm of the girl, who had been staring at the twins the whole time._

"_Get moving, brat. You won't be seeing those beasts again."_

_The girl screamed and struggled, being half dragged away, as she tried to turn back and run towards the boys, who didn't take their golden eyes off of her._

"_Debitto! Jasdero!" she screamed, until her mother had dragged her away from the scene._

_The boys stared with eyes now empty of expression, and then whispered together, "Motoko…"_

_And then the crowd closed in on them._

* * *

Golden eyes opened to stare at the night. All was dark, and it was probably very early in the morning. Jasdero turned to look at his brother, only to be met with the gaze of the same golden eyes as his.

"You awake, Debi?" the twin asked, and his brother nodded. They were staying in one of the village's inns, along with several akuma they had brought along for the mission. Their room was small, having only two small beds and a window from which the bright moonlight spilled through and illuminated the boys.

Jasdero climbed out of his bed and curled up at the end of his brother's, enjoying the comfort and closeness of another being after his nightmares.

"You having them too?" Debitto asked quietly. "The nightmares?"

Jasdero nodded silently.

"Best not sleep then…" Debitto went on, staring out the window at the starry night sky.

There was a long pause between the two, and just as Debitto was starting to think that Jasdero had fallen back asleep, the blond whispered,

"Debi, do you think she's still here?"

There was silence from Debitto. Then…

"I don't know what you're talking about…" the boy mumbled, and turned over and pretended to go back to sleep.

Jasdero only stared at him sadly.

* * *

To start it off, she had woken up with a headache.

Normally, things like that are bad signs.

And now, as she stood at the restaurant's kitchen sink up to her elbows in soap suds, Toko wondered if the day could get much worse. She had already tripped over her own feet more times than she could count, getting various injuries in the process, and dropped two customers' orders, which had earned her dish duty. Not to mention she'd already managed to chip two plates. She might never get the feeling of soap suds off of her hands.

Of course these sorts of things came along with being a complete and total klutz, but it was worse than usual today. Part of it could be that her mind couldn't seem to focus on the task at hand for more than a few seconds. She was too busy thinking about Cassie's incident two days ago.

Though Cassie didn't seem bothered by it anymore, Toko was worried. Not just worried, but curious.

Because she _did_ know of two people who fit the description.

Of course it couldn't be them, though. She pushed the painful thought from her mind, trying to focus on the dishes again. But try as she might she couldn't concentrate, a as she picked up another plate to wash, it slipped out of her hand, and crashed to the floor.

She winced at the sound of breaking glass. Perfect way to top off the long day. Cassie came running in to see what had happened, and sighed at the sight.

"Again? Is something bothering you?" she asked as Toko quickly rinsed suds off of her hands and grabbed a towel to pick of the glass pieces with. Cassie stepped over a few pieces of glass gingerly and took the other towel that Toko offered to her.

Toko only sighed as the picked up the pieces one by one. "No, nothing's bothering me." She lied. Cassie wouldn't understand, she was sure. Best to not worry her.

Cassie raised an eyebrow, her blond locks slipping out into her face. "Are you sure? You've been like this since those brats bothered me." she said slowly. Shit. She'd noticed that.

Toko gave her a half shrug. "Really, it's nothing. I've just been really absent-minded lately."

"Alright…" Cassie said, though she clearly didn't believe the story. But if Toko didn't want to talk about it she wasn't going to press the matter. Already, it was getting dark outside, the sun casting a beautiful light on the mountains in the distance, and the last customers had just left.

"Hey, hey, did you hear?" Cassie asked suddenly. Toko looked up, the last of the glass in her hand.

"What?" she asked, standing up to throw the sharp pieces away. "Did something happen?" Perhaps her voice sounded a little too hopeful or something, but Cassie frowned.

"Well, apparently several men have come into town. No one knows why, but they're staying at the inn down the street. Who knows? Maybe those brats are with them, but so far no one has seen them. But we should probably just drop the whole matter. If it happens again, then we can give them a good beating." Cassie said with a grin, flexing non-existent muscles.

Toko broke out in laughter. "Yeah right."

Cassie smiled, happy to finally make Toko laugh. "Hey, I'll finish this up. You just go home now, okay?" she suggested, waving her hand on the remaining dishes to be washed.

Toko shook her head. "No, I wouldn't make you-"

"No, really. You look like you need some rest. I don't mind at all."

Toko sighed, giving in. "Alright. I'll see you tomorrow then." she said, drying her hands off one more time.

Cassie only smiled.

* * *

By the time Toko had changed from her uniform and headed out the door, making sure to thank Cassie one last time, the sun had set and most streets were completely empty. Even though she knew she was safe, she always felt a little nervous walking alone through those streets.

It gave her a creepy feeling. Somewhere, in someone's house, the sound of a piano playing could be heard. In another, a child was crying faintly. In some windows, light shone through, while in others, there was complete darkness.

Observing her surroundings, Toko noticed she had just passed the town's inn, and she thought about the men that were rumored to be staying there. Who were they? Why were they here? Pointless questions like that ran through her head until she forced them to shut up. But still, the one question that was really bothering her remained, even though she knew the answer…

The boys… Could they possibly be…

"Oi oi oi, what's a little girl like you doing out at night?" a deep, jeering voice asked.

"And alone, no less." said another male voice.

"Such a pretty little thing. Almost good enough to eat." said a third.

Toko whipped her head around, alarmed, to stare at the three men who had addressed her. She was sure she had never seen them before, and she assumed they were the men staying at the inn. Her breath froze in her throat, fear suddenly taking her, though she didn't know why. Maybe it was the fact that she was alone after dark with three strangers. Or maybe it was the way they were eyeing her, not like a woman, but like a piece of meat.

She took a step back, and cursed as she realized she was wearing heals. Not the best running material, but it might serve well in a foot-meet-face situation. But she would rather not have to attack; when facing three larger men, running was definitely the better option.

The first man grinned, noting her step back, and made two steps forward. "Don't be like that, sweet." he said softly, but something in the tone of his voice sent shivers down Toko's spine.

There was always the option of kicking off her heels and running. Even if these men meant no harm, which seemed highly unlikely, she didn't want to risk staying around.

"I'm sorry…" she mumbled, taking a few steps back. "I can't stay…" She still had half a mile to go before she reached her house, and since it was empty, it wasn't the best place to run to. Cassie was back doing the dishes, so her best bet was to run to someone, anyone else's house.

She turned around, ready to kick off her shoes and sprint, but the first man was already upon her. He hung on to her arm tightly, pulling her close enough for her to smell his rotten breath, and sneered in her face. His free hand moved to cover her mouth tightly, and the other two men laughed as she struggled to be rid of his grip.

"Don't be like that, pretty. We just want a little fun before we kill you." he purred in her ear, sending a wave of panic through her body.

And then, easily resisting her struggles, he and the other two men dragged her back into a pitch black ally…

* * *

The evil cliffhanger! Review, I wanna know what everyone thinks.

And the whole washing of dishes part was from my experience earlier today with a mountain of dirty dishes, and I felt as if I would never get the feeling of suds off of my hands.


	3. Demon's Night Out

Sorry for the long wait! Chapter three is up. Because there's no D.Gray-man this week, I figured I should do something to ease the pain of waiting for one more week for the next chapter.

I've been so busy lately that I've only had time to write this out on paper, not type it. What with a big Health project (I now know all I will ever need to know about Mad Cow disease...), failing my big math test (18.5/50, woohoo), and planning for my birthday (which was yesterday), I barely had enough time to sleep. But here you go; and enjoy.

I tried to keep the twins as in-character as I could, but I might have, you know, gotten a little too carried away.

Oh, and before I forget, I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed. It really means a lot to me since I have such low confidence in myself. I'm just glad no one hates it.

I'm sure you must be tired of me talking now, so I'll shut up and let you read the chapter. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: D.Gray-man isn't mine in any way. No matter how much I wish it.

* * *

The first man who had grabbed her pushed her roughly against the hard brick wall, forcing the air out of Toko's lungs. His hand covered her mouth, and not even her muffled screams could make it out. The other two men were laughing, each pinning one of her arms against the wall.

She couldn't make a sound, could only stare in horror and terror as the three towered above her, all grins. The first mad's free hand moved, almost casually, up to her neck, where it rested and threatened to choke her at any moment. Of course she tried to struggle, but up against three grown men, she was completely powerless. Anyone would be.

Then man to her left, with short blond hair and freckles, glanced at the one holding her to the wall.

"Hey, you sure we should be doin' this?" he asked.

The first man snorted with laughter. "Why shouldn't we? We've been looking for three days straight. We deserve a break." He said, and licked his lips, staring down at the helpless girl.

The large blond gave him a nervous look. "But the Noahs said we should keep a low profile… And killing this human might anger them."

The first rolled her eyes, still grinning. "Like one little girl will expose us. The Noahs won't even know… And if they find out, we'll just say we lost control and killed her. It's close enough to the truth."

The man to her right didn't disagree, and the blond to her right was silent, giving in. The first continued.

"Besides, I'm bored out of my mind. Searching for innocence that probably isn't even here… And those two Noah aren't even helping."

Toko wiggled desperately, trying to free her mouth to scream, but the hand tightened around her throat, choking her. The man, who seemed to be the leader of the three men, glanced down at her, with a bored but bloodthirsty look on her face.

"It's been a while since I've gotten to kill anything, so I want to see this one suffer, cry, beg for its life." He whispered quietly, a crazed look in his eye.

And then she knew she was going to die. These men weren't human. Something, everything about them was like that of a demon. A silent scream ripped through her entire being. The fear and pain of death clawed at her soul, trying to force its way out in that scream. But she could feel her life slipping away as she could no longer take breath, the want to air making her mind foggy. Still she did not shed tears.

This seemed to annoy the demon-man. He scowled, tightening his grip. "Come on, at least cry if you can't beg."

In one last desperate attempt, her mind going blurry, she lifted her leg, and with as much strength as she could muster, brought down her heeled foot and shoe into the men's boot-covered foot.

Finally, she was grateful to be wearing those heels. The man let out a yell of pain, loosening his grip on her just a bit. The man to her right gave a shout of surprise, and let go of her arm.

She took the chance. With her free hand, and new energy from the much needed oxygen, and rammed her palm upward into the man's nose with a force that was sure to break it.

She heard a sickening cracking sound, and blood flowed, covering her hand and clothes. The man screamed again, covering his nose with his free hand. The men on either side had readjusted their holds on her, rendering her immovable again.

Her hand hurt more than it should; though she knew the blood on her hand wasn't hers, it felt as though she's just jammed her fist into a steel wall. Her hand felt broken, and she suspected it really could be.

The man was staring down with her with wide eyes full of fury. "You little bitch…" he hissed. If she had been afraid of him before, it didn't even compare to how terrified she was now.

One of the other men let out a low whistle.

"Now she's done it."

And then everything changed.

She couldn't scream; every part of her has frozen up as she stared up at the huge demon that had been a man a few seconds before.

The serpent-like demon grinned down at her, eyes burning red and long fangs bared. The upper half of its body was more humanoid, with two clawed, scaly arms and a bare torso, while the bottom was simply a huge snake body covered in rough black scales.

Her brain screamed at her to run, but her body would not obey. She could only stare wide eyed up at the monster.

And then she knew she was going to die.

The monster leaned down and cupped her face in its clawed hands, scales rubbing roughly against her soft skin. The smile it wore was filled with bloodlust and insanity, and a thin, forked tongue slipped out of its horrid mouth.

"Sorry, pretty." It hissed quietly, pulling her in close. "Any chance of you or anyone else in this town surviving, you just destroyed." the smile widened. "I'm going to kill everyone in this God forsaken town."

The tongue ventured further out of the mouth, slithering over to her cheek and resting there. A horrible shudder ran through her body, sending chills to every part of her being. The tongue slid across her cheek, cold as steel, and she gave a start as she felt the stinging pain and the blood flow down from the cut it had made.

Her blood slid down her face like red tears of life. Some of it dripped onto her already blood-covered hand. But something curious happened.

She was too terrified of the man -no, the monster- to notice; small, black pentacles were appearing where her blood mixed with the demon's. The pentacle blood covered her hand, and some of her shirt.

"And I'm going to start by killing you."

The other two men –no, they were probably demons too- laughed. They had remained silent until that point, and now watched with hungry expressions on their faces.

"Bad luck, pretty." one said.

"Yeah. He's probably really close to evolving." said the other.

"I bet once he kills everyone he will."

"No way, we won't let him have all the kills!"

"Yeah, we have to have some too."

They laughed again, their eyes having a strange red glow to them. The serpent-demon licked its lips, his grip, tightening around her.

"Good night, sweety."

"RED BOMB!" a simultaneous cry suddenly cut through the scene. There were two gunshots, and then the two men were screaming, blazing, aflame. Their skin melted away as they screeched into the night, eventually leaving only the blackened metal skeleton-like containers that had held their souls.

"Stupid pieces of junk." Came a harsh voice barely masking its rage. Two figures stood at the entrance to the ally, and both the demon and Toko's eyes were on them. They lowered their golden guns.

"Let her go." The first spoke again.

The akuma looked confused and angry.

"Noah-samas? What did you do that for?" is hissed its question, still not letting go of her. "We were just-"

"Let her go." both spoke now, their voices full or wrath.

In its surprise, it did indeed let her go, letting her drop several feet onto the cold, hard stone ground.

She let out a tiny gasp, not prepared. As she landed, her foot twisted under her, sending waves of pain shooting up her leg. A cry of pain escaped her lips as she still held back tears.

The black-haired twin looked at his twin and nodded his head towards her. Jasdero immediately ran to her side, kneeling down beside her to examine her injuries.

"Debi, she's got akuma blood on her." he called back, and Toko heard his brother swear loudly.

"Get it off, quick." came the reply.

Jasdero nodded, gently taking her throbbing hand with the akuma blood on it.

"Can you stand up?" he asked her quietly.

She didn't seem to hear him; she had finally noticed the pentacles in the blood. "What's that?" she asked aloud, reaching out to touch it. Jasdero quickly grabbed her arm, preventing her from touching the poisoned blood.

"Don't touch."

She looked up at him. Through her pain and terror, the world seemed blurred, unreal. For a moment, she simply stared, her eyes widening slowly.

"Jasdero?" came her quiet, unbelieving question.

Jasdero looked at her sheepishly, turning his head away slightly, and then nodded.

His appearance had changed at lot since she had last seen him, but she recognized him; his hair was longer now, strange make-up surrounded his eyes, his mouth stitched… And his eyes. Even in the din light she had seen them, entrancing, golden. Cross shaped scars ran across his forehead, and she realized with a sick feeling that she recognized them.

She glanced over to the other boy, and recognized Debitto immediately. His hair was only a bit longer, but just as messy and uncombed as it had always been; and though locks of it fell over his face, she could barely make out the same scars as Jasdero's. His face had lost most of its childish features, and he wore make-up similar to his brother's.

Though he was staring at the bewildered akuma, furious his own deep golden eyes flickered quickly to glance at her. Meeting her blue eyes, he quickly looked away back at the akuma, pretending that he had not noticed her staring at him.

Jasdero was still trying to coax Toko to stand, pulling on her uninjured arm lightly. Finally, once she had gained some sort of energy, she tried to stand. She groaned softly, as she used her injured hand to push herself off of the ground; the pain was still there, but it didn't seem broken. Her ankle pretested when she put weight on it, but she clenched her teeth together and was silent.

The akuma glanced from Debitto to Jasdero, its red eyes narrowed to slits and its steel tongue flickering out of its mouth.

"What is this, Noah-samas? It's just one human. She would probably go unnoticed if she went missing. Why does it matter is we kill her?" it asked, its eyes still darting between the twins.

Jasdero's expression was dark, and as Toko once more looked at Debitto, she saw his expression was identical.

"It's just one human. Not even important at all." it went on.

Without looking up, both twins raised their guns and pointed it at the akuma simultaneously.

The thing looked more than nervous now. "Noah-samas?"

"Shut it. We would order you to self-destruct, but that's too quick and painless." Debitto hissed.

"W-what are you-"

"RED BOMB!"

There was a small 'click', two gunshots, and then the akuma's screams pierced the night.

"Why?! It's just one human! I was so close to evolving!" it screeched and spat, writhing on the ground in flames.

Toko could only watch in mute horror as its large serpent body twitched and squirmed, screams of pain slowly returning to silence as it died. Those screams were something she would never forget as long as she lived. Its corpse lay blackened, burnt, and unmoving through many of her nightmares to come.

Debitto took his time turning away from the dead akuma and making his way over to Jasdero and Toko. As he neared them, he noticed the unfocused look in Toko's eyes, and how she was putting all of her weight on one uninjured foot.

But his voice was quiet, and almost strangely calm for him.

"Motoko."

* * *

So there you have it! I've already got some of chapter four written out on paper, so it shouldn't take too long to get it up.

And in case anyone was wondering (and because I can't stop saying it), I got a car for my sixteenth birthday. Can't drive it yet, but I'm very happy. And surprised.

On a side note, I find that it's hard to describe akuma and action scenes... Forgive me if they're confusing or if they suck.


	4. Back from the Dead

Here you are, fourth chapter. I typed this up in a rush so if(or should I say when?) you find mistakes in spelling, grammar, or just typoes, you can tell me and I'll fix them later.

Sorry it's so depressing, and somewhat shorter. I'm also trying to give Tyki a larger part in this, so we'll see how that turns out.

And I promise, next chapter will be lighter, and funnier. -sweatdrop-

Enjoy, even though it's depressing and written in a rush.

**Disclaimer**: D.Gray-man is still not mine...

* * *

Motoko looked up at him. No one called her that anymore. She was always 'Toko', never called by her full name anymore.

Debitto examined her; she was lucky, very lucky. None of the akuma blood had managed to penetrate her skin and make its way through her bloodstream. It was a miracle, even. Any other injuries would heal in time.

"Come on, we gotta wash it off." he said. It would be unfortunate, no terrible, if they were to rescue her from the akuma, only to have its blood accidentally get through one of her wounds.

Looking around, he spotted a back door of one of the shops that lead into the ally. This was probably their best bet at finding something to wash the blood off.

"Jas." he said, pointing to the door. His brother, who was helping to support Toko, nodded in understanding. They both raised their guns and pointed them at the door.

Toko blinked. "What are you-"

"White bomb!"

The shot hit the door. Different from the first two flame shots, it didn't burn the door… It didn't even destroy it.

It made it simply disappear. Toko's eyes widened.

"How-"

"Shut up. You're noisy." Debitto said gruffly, quickly dismissing her question, and stepped through the now doorless doorway. Jasdero made a small whining noise, and Debitto just rolled his eyes.

Thankfully, there was a small bathroom at the back of the shop, and they were able to wash the blood off. It still covered her clothes, but this didn't concern them as much.

Toko was bewildered and still in a state of shock, as she let Jasdero wash and wipe away the blood from her while Debitto watched. Her mind wasn't functioning right, but some part of her was saying, screaming at her that something wasn't quite right.

Then it hit her.

"You're both dead." she said suddenly, making Jasdero stop and Debitto turn to her confused.

"They killed both of you, back then…" she went on, and her voice faded slightly as the next realization washed over her.

"I'm dreaming." she whispered, some part of her feeling a bit more than sad. She had almost hoped, almost let herself believe…

The twins looked at her, confusion still on their faces.

"What?" Debitto asked.

She was smiling now, a smile full of sorrow. "I'm dreaming. Now that I think about it, none of this is realistic at all." She said, thinking of the akuma corpse that lay outside with a shudder. "More like a nightmare."

This last statement seemed to annoy Debitto. "So what, we're part of your nightmares, are we?"

Toko almost laughed. "I don't know what kind of dream this is now, but I guess it's not really a bad one now…" she said slowly, thoughtful.

Jasdero furrowed his brow. "But this isn't-"

Debitto cut him off. "So why are you dreaming about us?" he asked with a grin.

Toko shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe I really… have been thinking about you guys a lot these past days…" she looked sad. "Missing you…"

Debitto swallowed, his grin gone now. "You miss us?" his voice was quieter than usual.

Toko forced a laugh. "Why am I still talking? Usually you wake up once you realize that you're dreaming."

Jasdero tried again, and this time Debitto didn't stop him. "Motoko… you're not dreaming." he said slowly.

Toko's smile instantly vanished. "What?"

"You're awake. You have been this whole time. This is _real_." Debitto said, placing his hands on his hips. "And we're obviously not dead, seeing as we're here right now."

Jasdero nodded enthusiastically, his hair falling into his face. He looked worried, waiting for her reaction.

"But… they were talking about… bragging, even… that they killed you… h-how they killed you…" Toko stuttered slightly, looking confused. "I heard them. They even described… in detail… I couldn't sleep for weeks…" she was no longer looking at them, too absorbed in a painful, terrifying memory.

Debitto shook his head. "Lies, illusions. Maybe they thought they killed us, but obviously not. We're right here." he said calmly.

Toko looked up at them, her eyes unfocused again. "But, I…"

Jasdero still looked worried. "Motoko…"

And that was when her body decided to finally give out on her, sending her mind into the darkness of unconsciousness as she slumped to the ground…

* * *

_Men's laughter, unaware of the child listening to them, continued, oblivious to the pain they were causing._

"_Well, we don't have to worry about those demons again."_

_More laughter._

"_To be honest, I got kinda worried when I saw what they did to Izumi-san, but they didn't even try to use their freaky powers on us."_

"_Yeah, easy."_

"_Hahaha! Easy as drowning kids."_

"_But that's what we did, right?"_

_Again, laughter._

"_What did you do with the bodies?"_

"_Burned them. The only way to make sure monsters stay dead is to burn them."_

"_They sure screamed a lot, right?"_

"_Cried too."_

"_Yeah, sure was annoying."_

"_That black haired one was feisty."_

"_Yeah. Growled and snarled, but couldn't really do anything, could he?"_

"_Haha, yeah. Wouldn't leave the stupid blond one alone."_

"_Yeah. Had to beat 'em half to death before I could get 'em to stop yellin' for each other."_

"_Then what'd you do?"_

"_Dropped 'em in the lake. You know, by Izumi-san's house?"_

"_She came to watch, right?"_

"_Yeah, we called her over to watch. Y'know, since she was still angry 'bout them using their freaky powers on them."_

"_What about that kid of hers?"_

"_Who cares? It's just a stupid kid. Stupid for trying to save those brats."_

"_Well, they're dead now."_

_Enough. Enough. The scream tore through her entire body, sending waves of tears and pain through her. Then men looked, saw, the child that had been watching, listening. _

_They merely turned back to their conversation when she ran from the place, screaming. To the lake, no, that was where they had died… She couldn't go back, no… _

_And so she ran in no direction at all, paying no attention to anything around her. People stared as she ran past them on the street, wondering what the crying child was doing on her own. But she didn't care. She could only run._

_They had been right there, crying, calling out. Right in her back yard, dying. And she had been in bed crying, doing nothing._

_She was somewhere near the edge of town when the nausea hit her. She collapsed on the ground, fighting back against it. Breathing hard, she closed her eyes, letting the tears run down her face and the sobs rip through her body._

_The image of the two, floating in the lake, eyes staring blankly at the sky and the silhouettes of the men who had killed them, entered her mind. She screamed, throwing herself on the grass, trying to get rid of the horrible image. The nausea hit again, harder to push back this time. All of this was too much for a child to withstand._

_Her whisper was hoarse, barely audible through her sobs._

"_D-Debitto… Jasdero…" _

"_Forget about them."_

_Toko gasped, the sobs subsiding, as she looked up to see the speaker. Through her tears, she couldn't see quite clearly, but when she wiped them away she saw a tall, curly haired man. His eyes were a beautiful golden that she would never forget, and his skin was a strange tone. Crosses that resembled Jasdero and Debitto's ran across his forehead, and he stared down at her. _

"_W-wha-"_

"_Just forget about them. It's not worth going on remembering. They're gone. Not coming back. Do you understand?" the man spoke again, his voice gentle and almost sympathetic._

_The tears started up again, and the man sighed and turned away. "I guess I can't expect a child to understand…"_

"_Why?"_

_He blinked, turning back to her. "What?"_

_A sob racked through her body, but she fought back to speak. _

"_Why? Why them? They didn't… do anything." she spoke through the pain._

_His expression was sympathetic. "That's the way it has to be. But you're lucky, you know. Normally we'd have to get rid of anyone who knew them. But they didn't want that." he didn't seem to be speaking to her, more to himself._

"_Wha-"_

"_Go home, kid. Forget about them. Live on. That's what they want, anyway."_

"_Want?"_

_He paused. "Wanted." he corrected himself._

"_How do you… who… Who are you?" the tears had died down now, and she managed to speak more clearly._

_The man just shook his head. "Go home." he said once more, and turned to walk away._

"_W-wait!"_

_But he was already gone, having practically disappeared before her eyes. She stared at the spot where he had been, wondering who he was… and what he had to do with Jasdero and Debitto._

_Go home…_

_She stood up, swaying slightly. Yes. She would go home. Forget about it. There was nothing she could do anymore. And from that moment on, she swore to herself that she would be stronger, and not cry again…_

_And she turned, and started the long walk back home…_

* * *

There you go. No idea when the next chapter will be up, seeing as I have a HUGE English project due on the 22nd that I haven't even started yet... -sweat-

I'll try and do what I can though. Read and review, please!


	5. Burnt Eggs, Anyone?

It isn't surprising in the least that I once agian did this in a rush. So, again, if there are any typos, mistakes, or anything else, just tell me and I'll fix it.

In honor of their fight in the anime, I've decided to update faster than usual; and 'forget' to do my art homework and other end of the year things. So, enjoy the fifth chapter.

Also, in honor of him appearing in the manga again, Tyki will be showing up more often.

**Disclaimer**: However much I wish it, neither D.Gray-man nor Jasdebi belong to me.

* * *

The twins stared silently at the sleeping girl. It hadn't been too difficult to carry her back to her house; Debitto had done most of the carrying. And luckily they still remembered where she lived, as they had spent hours playing there when they were younger.

But they faced the real challenge now.

Her bloodstained clothes.

They had let it go long enough, and it was a hazard. There was still the slightest chance that, somehow, the blood could enter her body, and they didn't want to risk leaving it on any longer.

So… they would have to change her clothes.

And so they stared, faces blank, wondering how the hell they were going to do this.

Debitto cleared this throat. "We should… take it off…" he said, referring to the shirt, which had the most blood on it.

Jasdero nodded, still staring at her. "You do it, Debi."

"No way, you do it!"

"… We can both do it."

They exchanged glances at each other, the thought of half-stripping a woman running through their minds…

And then they exchanged a grin.

Their glance moved to the dresser that sat, lonely, in the back of her bedroom.

"Do you think that's where she keeps her shirts?" Jasdero asked. The only other place where the garments could be kept was the small closet on the other side of the room.

Debitto shrugged. "Only one way to find out."

There was silence between the two again. Not only would they be stripping a sleeping woman, but also rummaging through her drawers… And who knew what other goodies could be contained in there. This kind of thing wasn't usually their job. No, they usually saved these sorts of things for Tyki, who _really_ enjoyed going through a woman's underwear and bra drawers.

"… You do it, Debi."

"No way! You do it!

"I'm not doing it!"

Debitto growled and threw off his jacket. "Fine! She can just wear _my_ shirt." he said, taking off the loose, sleeveless shirt that he always wore. Jasdero watched as his twin brother stood there, topless, and suppressed a giggle.

"Oh, shut up." Debitto said, annoyed, but grinned anyway. "So will you stop giggling and help me get her stupid shirt off of her?"

"Debi, that sounded dirty." Jasdero giggled again, and Debitto rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, we're gonna strip her, alright? Let's make sure we have some fun with it." he said sarcastically. He was glad he could make Jasdero laugh, though. The blond twin seemed more nervous, worried, since they had found Toko, no, since they had even come back to this place.

Jasdero laughed. "So… what now?"

Ohh, the dreaded question…

"Um, well, now we have to take her shirt off…" Debitto said slowly, wincing as he realized that Jasdero was right when he said it sounded dirty.

"…how?"

"Don't ask how, I don't know. We just do it."

"Debi…"

"What? I'm thinking. I don't want to wake her up either." Debitto said, biting his lip. Then he came up with an idea.

"I'll be right back. Watch her for a bit." The black-haired brother said, making his way to the bedroom doorway.

"Where are you going?"

"To the kitchen. Now shush."

Jasdero watched as his brother went, confused. What was in the kitchen that would help them remove Motoko's bloodied shirt? They had already spent enough time on it, and he was getting tired; both of them were, though neither would admit it.

Debitto soon reappeared with a pair of scissors. Jasdero's eyes widened.

"What're you gonna do with those?" he asked, curious.

Debitto grinned. "Snip snip."

Jasdero gave a quiet, almost insane sounding laugh. "And after that?"

Debitto glanced back at the dresser, particularly at one drawer, that his make instincts were telling him was the underwear and bra drawer. He turned to his brother, a positively evil look on his face.

"We have fun."

* * *

Waking up to the smell of burning eggs and toast isn't the most… assuring things in the world.

Toko's eyes flew open, and she sat up, alarmed. The night before was a blur… and she couldn't even remember getting home. Or getting changed into the loose, sleeveless top she was wearing. When had she bought this, she vaguely wondered, looking around.

She'd had some strange dreams… So realistic, yet made no sense at all. Something about giant snakes, guns, and fire.

And the twins.

She had been about to throw herself out of the soft bed onto the warm, wooden floor heated by the sunlight that poured through the only window in the room, but stopped. The twins. Why had she been dwelling on them so much lately? She had already moved on, gotten over it, tried to forget, though the last would never really be possible.

They had been there, in her dreams, saving her, comforting her… at least, in the first one. The second wasn't as kind. Later on in the night, she had had one of her old, reoccurring dreams of the past… of the say she had found out of their death. The day she decided to move on and forget.

She shook her head. It didn't bother her as much as is had before, but it was still an unpleasant memory.

The burning smell was starting to bother her though. It could be Cassie paying an early morning visit, but she didn't usually just waltz in and burn her food. She found herself rolling her eyes, smiling, and jumped out of bed, only to stumble as she put weight on one of her ankles.

She collapsed on the ground lightly, unable to stand. She stared at her ankle, confused as it throbbed slightly. Had she fallen the night before? She couldn't remember. An image from her dream flashed through her head, but she quickly pushed it away. Looking around the room, she realized that something seemed off…

Her eyes fell on her dresser. Yes, that seemed to be the place where the not-quite-right vibes seemed to be centering around. Several of the drawers were open, with the contents spilling out, wrinkled and unorganized. On closer inspection, Toko found that they were the drawers that contained her underwear and bras…

On even closer inspection, she found that some of the said contents were missing. They, several bras and several pairs of panties, were soon discovered near the door in a messy pile that she was sure she had nothing to do with. For some reason, she found herself flushing a bright red.

And now, it was high time that she found out what the hell Cassie was doing. She stood up cautiously, testing her ankle, and found that she was able to walk, though with a slight limp. Standing up so fast and without warning hadn't been good for it, but she was fine now.

She opened her bedroom door slowly and quietly, and stared down the hall. She couldn't see the kitchen from the hall, but she could hear voices… Wait, voices? As in, more than one? Toko thought back, wondering if Cassie had a boyfriend, and as far as she could remember, she didn't. All of the voices were male… What was going on?

As she crept closer, she could begin to make out what was being said.

"Don't burn it all, you stupid vagabond!"

"Hee hee! It doesn't even look edible!"

"Would you two shut up? You know I can't cook."

"Then try harder, dammit!"

"Why do I have to do this for you idiots?"

"Shut up! You know we can't do things like this."

"Oh, yes, you're much better at removing women's clothing."

… women's clothing? Toko glanced down at the shirt she was wearing…

"Hee! I almost think we could have done better than Tyki!"

"… Can I go home now?"

"No you can't!"

Toko felt sick; because she recognized two of the voices. It seemed that these weird dreams weren't over yet. Slowly, she peeked her head around the corner… and nearly turned around to go right back to bed.

It wasn't Cassie.

She knew it was the twins immediately, but it took her a moment to remember where she had seen the tall, curly haired man before. In fact, if she hadn't been dreaming of him earlier, she might not have remembered. And even though it had been several years since he had spoken to her, he still looked relatively the same.

It was, in fact, the handsome young man who spotted her first.

He blinked his dark brown eyes, looking surprised, and she wondered if the beautiful golden color she remembered had just been a part of her imagination. "Oh, you're finally up?" he asked, and Toko cursed herself for getting caught, just wanting to run back into her room and sleep until she stopped having crazy dreams. Like this.

Both twins whipped their heads around to look at her, Jasdero's long hair hitting Debitto in the face and causing the black haired boy to spit out a mouthful of blond hair before he could speak. Toko also noted that neither of the boys were wearing shirts, and had simply thrown jackets over their bare chests. Even though she knew it was a dream, she could feel the blush working up around her cheeks.

"Nice to finally join us." The black haired boy said once he had rid his mouth of hair, noting Toko's blush and grinning.

"Like what you see?" he asked, putting a hand on his hips while Jasdero giggled quietly.

The older man rolled his eyes. "Morons…"

Toko just stared, still blushing slightly, and then turned without a word to go back to her room.

"Woah, where are you going?" Debitto asked, his grin gone, and Toko stopped, but still did not face them.

"Back to bed."

"Why? We worked our asses off to make you breakfast and everything!" Debitto almost whined. The man coughed.

"You mean I did…"

"Shut it, Tyki."

"Don't take credit for things you haven't done, stupid twins."

"Eh, but Dero didn't say anything, hee!"

Toko sighed, and started down the hallway.

Debitto grabbed her arm, holding her back, and she turned to give him a death glare.

"Let go."

"Why?"

"Because I'm tired of this and I just want to wake up from this stupid dream."

Tyki snickered. "Told you she wouldn't believe it."

"Quiet, Tyki!" Both twins yelled.

Toko tried to yank her arm out of the boy's grip, but to no avail. "Look, moron, let go!" she all but snarled, causing the boy to give her a strange look.

"Woah, you changed a bit. When did you get so… angry?" he asked.

Toko snorted. "When even in my dreams idiots won't listen to what I tell them to do."

Jasdero finally decided to pipe up. "But, Motoko, you're not dreaming!" he said enthusiastically. Strange, how he was so worried and almost depressed the night before, but was happy as could be now.

Toko stopped, staring at the boy. Of course she didn't believe it; but then at the same time, part of her did. And really _did_ want to believe. But hoping, dreaming that something that can never come true, can, is dangerous.

So she said two words against her better judgment.

"Prove it."

* * *

...

If you're wondering what kind of 'fun' the twins had, just imagine Debitto holding a pair of panties and Jasderi trying on a bra. I was gonna put that in there(and still might) but it was a really hard scene to write. And to clarify what the scissors were for, they were for cutting away the bloody shirt, because they were too lazy to just pull it off of her.

The first half of this was really hard for me to write, but near the second half, thankfully, it got easier. Hope you enjoyed, and wait with held breath for chapter six!


	6. Once you had Gold

Woo, chapter six! Sorry for the long wait; I've been up past one in the morning every day this week doing a huge biography project on J.R.R. Tolkien, for English. Heh, so what am I doing now? Staying up until one to finish this chapter. Because I promised myself that I would.

Personally, I didn't like the ending of this chapter very much; I felt as though I didn't do a very good job of it, maybe because it's so late and I'm so tired and I had no idea where to end it. But I hope everyone likes it. I tried to keep everyone in character, and I hope I didn't slip up or anything.

Exams will be coming up in a few weeks, so I can't say how often chapters will come out now. Plus, I have five other projects that I need to complete now; two more for English, one for Health, and two for my art class. It sucks. I'm not used to being this busy.

Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. I might even show you guys some sneak peeks of things to come, if I have time. -wink-

Disclaimer: The usual.

* * *

"Prove it? How? Jasdebi asked, confused. Why couldn't Motoko just accept that they were alive?

Toko shrugged, still annoyed that Debitto wouldn't let her go. Since it was a dream, she might as well play along with them.

"I don't know. You tell me." she said, almost enjoying the identical looks of frustration on their faces. The two turned to Tyki.

"Help u-"

"No." Tyki said before they could finish, looking bored.

"Why the hell not?!"

"Because I've already done enough for you idiots."

"Then go home!"

"Didn't I already ask if I could, and you said no?"

The two stopped, thinking.

"Ah, well, why did you even come here in the first place?" Debitto asked, annoyed.

Tyki sighed, pulling out a cigarette. "Remember? Last night? The message I gave you?" he asked, digging through his pockets for a lighter.

The twins blinked simultaneously, and turned to each other.

"Message?" Jasdero whispered.

"What did he tell us again?"

"I don't remember."

Tyki, who had found his lighter and lit his cigarette, glared at the two, and threw the lighter at them. It hit the back of Jasdero's head, causing the blond to let out a yelp of surprise and pain, and bounced off of his head to hit Debitto in the face, who swore loudly.

"Dammit, Tyki!" the black haired boy yelled, his hand massaging this hurt forehead.

"We'll kill you! Kill you!" Jasdero screeched, tears of anger and pain trying to force their way out of his eyes.

Tyki just grinned. "Well then, I'll be going." he said, turning away from Toko and the twins.

"You forgot _this_!" Debitto yelled, picking up the lighter and chucking it at Tyki with all of his strength.

Toko expected, even in what she thought was a dream, for the lighter to whack the man in the back of the head, at the surprising speed it was flying at him. But, to her amazement, without even turning around, the man tilted his head slightly to the side, letting it whizz past his head, and caught it as it flew past him.

The man turned around, grinning. "Oh, thanks." he said, pocketing the potentially dangerous object.

"Get out…" Debitto hissed.

"Right, right…" Tyki smiled, glad he had gotten to have some fun so early in the morning. Fun for him, not the twins. Their pain and anger was his pleasure. Before he stepped through the door -for phasing through it would cause some problems, to say the least-, he turned around once more.

"By the way, it's a pleasure to see you again." he spoke to Toko, who jumped slightly, not expecting his attention.

"Out!" both twins yelled now, and with one last grin, Tyki shut the door behind him.

There was a strange silence between the three left in the kitchen, until Toko cleared her throat.

"Um… Can you let me go now?" she asked, glancing down where Debitto still gripped her arm. Debitto blinked, realizing that he was practically _holding her hand_, and let go. Jasdero snickered.

Toko looked away. For some reason, she was feeling slightly embarrassed.

"So, um… how are you going to convince me that this is real? Because you already have one strike against you." she said, pushing the feeling back.

"One… strike?" Jasdero asked.

Toko pointed to the door where Tyki had just left. "No normal human could have caught that thing like he did. Of course, if this was a dream, then…" she trailed off, trusting that they were smart enough to figure out the rest.

The twins were silent. Of course, he wasn't a normal human, but they couldn't really tell her that. Not only would she not believe them, but the message that Tyki had given them the night before, the one they had pretended to have forgotten, had specifically banned them from telling her, and anyone else, about them.

"Um, well, that is…" Debitto started, trying to think of a reason. None came. "Why do you think it's impossible?"

Toko shrugged. "It was amazing. There's no way it's real."

She was getting Debitto's nerves by now. "Look, do you _want_ to believe it or not?"

Toko was confused by this. "What do you mean?"

And so suddenly, he was so _close_, hands gripping her shoulders, his face near enough that she could feel his breath on her. She felt her own breath falter, or was it her heart? Frozen up, suddenly unable to move.

When had this dream become so _real_?

Debitto, oblivious to her shocked reaction, locked his eyes with hers. In human form, both of the twins had light blue, almost greenish eyes, much lighter that Motoko's deeper, ocean-blue eyes. It frustrated him that she _just wouldn't believe_. Did she not _want_ to? Had they managed to find her again, only to find that she didn't even _want_ them there?

Jasdero understood her reaction; and though he would never admit it, he was a bit envious at how easily his brother could capture a woman's attention without even realizing it. Sometimes he even wished they were identical twins, but he had to admit, he could never imagine it. No, he was content as he was…

Debitto, still oblivious of everything, took a breath, closing his eyes…

"Look, Motoko…" he started.

"Why do you call me that?" Toko asked, recovering enough to find her voice.

"Huh? Why wouldn't I? It's your name." he said, opening his eyes.

"B-but… no one calls me that anymore…" she said, trying to not look into those eyes that she hadn't seen in so long… No! That was wrong! A dream, simply that; she wasn't really seeing them.

But…

"Look, it doesn't matter. What matters is, do you _want_ to believe that this is real, or not?" Debitto asked, wondering why she was acting so strange suddenly.

She wouldn't meet his eyes; Debitto noticed this. And her answer was quieter than usual, lacking the air of defiance that she had before, packed into every syllable of her words.

"Of course… I do…"

"Then believe, dammit!" Debitto said, annoyed. He had just been starting to like the new, defiant Motoko, but now she was back to being the same, weak girl that they had left there.

"If it were so easy to believe, don't you think I would have already?" she asked, still quieter than usual, but at least with a bit of anger. She wouldn't admit it; this was starting, no, already felt way too real to be a dream. Plus, the two calling her Motoko would fit… There would be no way for them to know that no one called her that anymore.

Locking eyes with Debitto again, who was still looking frustrated, she noticed something seemed off… Something about a dream she had had earlier… Something about a demon, guns… The color of their eyes…

Then she remembered.

"You had gold…" she said quietly, more to herself, now unable to tear herself away from Debitto's eyes. Jasdero looked up, startled, and Debitto looked confused.

"What?"

Toko looked thoughtful. "Last night… I thought it was a dream, but… if, to say, this isn't a dream, then, amazing, that wasn't either, but…" her voice trailed off.

"Say it already!"

"Gold… Last night, your eyes were gold… And you looked… different..." How could she describe it without seeming crazy? The crosses on their foreheads, the guns, the skin… All of it seemed like something out of a dream.

But at that moment, everything did.

Jasdebi glanced at each other. Again, Tyki's message to tell her nothing… seemed harder to follow than they thought it would be.

"Uh, well, that is…" Debitto mumbled, still gripping Toko's shoulders without really realizing it.

"So, wait, you're saying that you believe it's not a dream now?" Jasdero asked hopeful.

Toko stopped, realizing that Debitto was still inches away from her face; it was… more than uncomfortable. She pushed against his bare chest, feeling the blush rising up to her cheeks again. "Can you…?"

Debitto blinked, and stepped back. "Ah, oh… sorry…"

"So? Do you believe us yet, or not?" Jasdero asked again, excited.

Toko folded her arms. "Well, assuming I believe you… how will you answer how you are alive?"

They'd been somewhat expecting this by now, and Debitto had already come up with a lie. The truth was much more complicated, something she should never have to know. The Earl had called for two akuma specifically with transforming abilities; these said akuma, when the twins were being taken to the lake to be drowned, were switched with the two young Noah. No one knew. No one realized, and the akuma had laid down their lived, if you could call them that, for their masters.

But they couldn't tell her this.

"It was a lie. We managed to get away. Well, obviously. It wasn't easy, and we would have been killed if Tyki hadn't been passing through and saved us."

Toko blinked. "Tyki? The guy who was just here?"

Jasdero, catching on, nodded. "Yeah. We got away. Anyway, I bet that man was angry and feeling stupid, so he told everyone that he killed us."

Toko narrowed her eyes. It didn't sound very believable… But not completely unbelievable.

"He sounded pretty…" she started.

"You believe us." Debitto said. It wasn't a question.

"Ah… I…"

Yes. Yes, yes… She couldn't help it. She didn't want it to be a dream. She'd started hoping that it could be true, and once you start hoping…

Debitto grinned. "You do."

"I do…"

Finally.

"But I swear, if I wake up, I will _never_ forgive you for this." she hissed.

Both twins laughed. It hadn't even taken much persuasion.

But she was speaking again.

"I'm not done yet." There was a dangerous gleam in her eyes that made the two a bit more than uneasy.

"Er, what is it?" Jasdero asked.

"How the hell did you get Debitto's shirt on me?" every word of her sentence was loaded with venom.

"Oh. About that-"

"And why the hell does it look like someone has gone through my drawers?"

"It's not like-"

But she wasn't finished yet.

"And last night… If this isn't a dream… Then last night, with that… that _thing_… Was that all real too?" it was amazing how fast her voice had gone from venomous to unsure, questioning, almost weak.

And here was where all the problems with explaining would start.

* * *

And there you have it. Now I need some sleep. -yawns-

But before I go, I'd like to give a big thank you to everyone who reads this, and an even bigger thanks to those who review. I never thought this story would turn out so great, and I have such a fun time writing it.

Well, I hope to see everyone again soon, in the next chapter!


	7. My Brothers in War

Yes, I know I said that they would be explaining this chapter, but I felt as though I should put this in here. Please forgive me!

All told from Tyki's point of view. I'm not used to writing from first person point of view, so if anything is confusing, just tell me.

**Disclaimer**: If I owned DGM, Jasdebi would rule the world.

* * *

_They were giggling so loud, I was surprise that they hadn't woken up the girl yet._

_Such immature kids, I hated dealing with them. But, once again, the Earl had sent me to give them a message. Why me? I had nothing to do with those two, other than being their 'brother'. I usually tried to avoid them; they had trouble written all over them, and they had no respect for me or anyone else. Except maybe the Earl. Maybe._

_When I entered the room, unnoticed by the two, I almost gave myself away with an annoyed sigh. Really… They were so immature. _

_Jasdero had a pair of panties on his head, and a bra in hand, giggling his little head off. His idiot brother was laughing with him as he put one of the bras over his flat, bare chest. Looking around, I saw where his shirt had ended up; on the girl. _

_I grimaced. If the girl could see them now, he was sure, no matter what kind of temper she had, those two would end up in some seriously deep shit. _

_I took a chance to actually get a look at the girl. It had been, what, three, four years since I had seen her? And already, she was grown, well on her way to womanhood. Did kids really grow up that fast? _

_She was a pretty little thing, even if, at that moment, her hair was a mess, a bit of dried blood covered her cheek, and it looked like she was having a nightmare. Those idiots… Were they even __**trying**__ to take care of her?_

_The two said idiots hadn't noticed me yet, so it was another good opportunity to have some fun. I phased back through the wall, back outside into the cold night, and quietly walked around the house. _

_It was small, and there weren't many rooms. It looked as though it had been built by someone with little experience. The whole place gave off a feeling of emptiness, or maybe more like loneliness, neglect. Weeds grew in what was once a garden, and it was in bad need of a fresh coat of paint._

_I vaguely wondered where the girl's parents were. Most teenagers don't live on their own, do they? I wouldn't know; for I had always been on my own. Sure, I had always had my human friends by my side, but as a Noah, I was different. I cared about humans. I didn't want to have to hurt them._

_Even though I knew I would._

_That's why it bothered me… that those two were suddenly so attached to this girl. What were their intentions? If they were just using her, I wouldn't let them… Wait, why did I think that?_

_Perhaps, because I had seen her back then, back when I had first met her, so fragile, so small, I felt an urge to protect her. She was just one human, right? But I, having mingled with them, couldn't help but be curious as to why the twins were suddenly doing so as well. Were they playing with her, or were they serious?_

_Did they really care about her like I, Tyki Mikk, did my own friends?_

_Or perhaps more. Could it possibly be…_

_No. That would be a mistake. Even I stayed away from women; staying with one for too long could get me attached, too attached. Having friends is one things; love is another._

_I pushed this all from my mind; time to have my fun. I had reached the front of the house, facing the faded door. Raising my gloved hand, I grinned, and quietly, knocked._

_Silence. The two must have frozen in place, wondering what to do. I crept back to the side of the house, and phased just my head through the wall to watch, and wait._

_The two had crept to the door, neither noticing me, and were staring at it. Neither knew what to do. I phased the rest of my body through soundlessly, sneaking up behind them…_

_The two were talking quietly to themselves._

"_Do you think it could be her mother?" Jasdero was whispering._

_Debitto's answer was quiet as well. "Sure hope not. That bitch… I don't think I'll be able to keep from killing her next time I see her." he growled._

_Jasdero nodded in agreement. "Let's just leave it; whoever it is will just leave."_

"_Yeah, yeah…"_

_And that was when I grabbed both of them, covering their mouths as they both let out identical screams of terror as they reached for the guns hidden in their jackets._

_I couldn't help it; I laughed so hard that it hurt, though I tried to be quiet about it. The two idiots were giving off a killing intent that every akuma within a fifty mile radius could probably sense. I let go of them once their muffled screams had subsided, and took a step back._

"_Hello, boys." I said, still grinning._

"_Damn you, Tyki!" Debitto hissed, glancing back to the room where the girl still slept soundly._

_Jasdero had his gun pointed at my head, though I didn't find it much of a threat. They wouldn't shoot me, I was sure. I had, after all, gotten them out of all sorts of trouble, and they owed me more than they could ever repay._

"_Why the hell are you here?" the blond monster asked, still looking upset over my joke. I could feel my grin fade as I got serious._

_I grabbed a cigarette and lit it, taking a long drag. The two fidgeted as I exhaled, obviously wanting me to get on with it, but I was going to enjoy their discomfort for as long as I could. Finally, with a sigh, I started._

"_The Earl already knows about what you did."_

_They froze, and their eyes darted to look at each other. I continued._

"_He's not angry though."_

_Sighs released simultaneously…_

"_But __**I**__ sure as hell am."_

_Both of them flinched back slightly at the harshness in my voice, hands traveling to their guns again._

"_Why would you be mad, Tyki?" came a small question from Jasdero, who was looking at me with wide eyes. He was trying to play the sympathy card, but I wasn't going to let it work on me._

"_You two left that akuma corpse out there. Just left it. If some humans found it, how easy do you think your job here would be? They would be in a frenzy, a panic! We're trying to keep their existence a secret for as long as possible; why else do you think we try so hard to silence those who know?" I spoke harshly, hammering the knowledge that they had done wrong into their heads._

_Jasdero was looking at the ground, feeling sorry. But Debitto was getting on my nerves. He stood, arms folded, staring out the window, obviously not listening to me. I growled, and grabbed a lock of his hair, causing him to screech, then quiet himself to small hisses of pain and annoyance._

"_**I**__ had to clean up those stupid pieces of junk. __**I**__ had to make sure no one was watching. And if someone had been, __**I**__ would have had to silence them."_

"_But Tyki-"_

"_We had to get her back here!" Debitto interrupted his brother, angry that I wouldn't let go. It probably hurt him, but I didn't care._

_I narrowed my eyes. "Oh? What have you been doing since you brought her here, I wonder?" _

_Debitto's eyes darted to look at his brother, and he groaned. Jasdero still has a pair of panties on his head. The black haired boy quickly tore it off of his brother's head, tossing it behind them in a random direction._

"_Um… we were…"_

_I wasn't done yet. "And she saw you two in your Noah forms. How stupid are you two? You just waltzed right in there and used your powers right in front of her! Do you even realize what might have to be done? " _

_Jasdero was fidgeting. He knew… And he didn't like it. I didn't like it either. The thought of having to 'silence' any of my friends was one that I tried to keep out of my mind._

"_You two might have to ki-"_

"_Shut up." Debitto snarled, golden eyes narrowed in fury. He slapped my hand away, and I let go of his head._

_I almost grinned. "So you __**do**__ care about her." _

"_Shut up!" They were both furious now._

_I sighed. This was going to be a problem._

"_Look, as long as you give her some excuse for what happened, you won't have to do anything to her. But really, didn't I tell you not to get attached to anything?" I asked, shaking my head._

_They calmed down a bit. "What are we supposed to tell her?" Jasdero asked, still not meeting my eyes._

_I shrugged. "That's not for me to figure out. You'll have to tell. But she can't know about you, about us. She'd just hate you anyway."_

_Yes. Protect yourself by not telling them. Humans hate us. Humans despise us, fear us. Why should this one girl be any different? None of them tried to understand, but then again, who would, when we were going to be killing them all? This was what kept the lies coming, what kept me from telling them where I was going all of the time…_

_Jasdero opened his mouth to say something, to protest, but Debitto gave him a glare that silenced him._

_I knew what he had been thinking. "You don't think she would hate you? Trust me, I've thought that before as well. It's always the same."_

"_Look, would you just leave us alone already? We got your message…" Debitto muttered. I suddenly felt a sort of sympathy for the two._

"_Look, I'm sorry things are this way. Honestly, if I had a choice… But we can't keep 'pets'. And we can't help what we are." _

"_She's not a pet." came another furious snarl from Debitto. That boy had such a temper._

_I sighed again. "Are you two coming home tonight? Or are you going to stay here?" I asked._

_Debitto shrugged. "We don't want to go back… And don't send any more akuma. We can do this job ourselves."_

_Again, I felt sorry. They wouldn't admit it, but they were trying to protect her. It was almost… cute. Wait, did I just think that about those monsters? No, no, certainly not…_

_But it was dangerous. They were already attached._

"_Alright… But you have one week to finish up here before we send in akuma to finish the job for you." I said. _

_The two gave me furious looks. _

"_No! We can handle it!"_

"_Look, this isn't my decision. It's the Earl's. Do you really want to argue with him? Again?" I asked, annoyed._

_The twins stopped. Oh yes, they remembered the last time they had tried to argue with the Earl. Bad things had happened, and neither of them wanted to relive that. Yes, the Earl, who was laughing, when he had actually been pretty pissed. It was a bad night for everyone._

_They had quieted, but I could tell they were still angry. Glancing at Debitto, I noticed something._

"_Hey, why is your finger bleeding?" I asked. The black haired brat quickly shoved his hand in his coat, glaring at me._

"_Oh, he accidentally cut it with the sciss-" Jasdero started._

"_Shut it!" Debitto hissed to his brother. I chuckled, earning another glare._

"_Only you, Debitto." _

"_Shut up!"_

"_Don't you ever get tired of saying that?" I was grinning then. They hadn't realized what I had done; driven the conversation away from how depressing it had been becoming._

_Debitto only growled at me, and Jasdero was giggling quietly. _

"_And you two should be in your human forms; you never know when she might wake up." I suggested. Of course, if the girl hadn't woken up by now, she probably wasn't going to anytime soon._

_I saw the looks of confusion on their faces, and realized something; had I ever even seen them in human form? Sure, I had seen Rhode, Lulubelle, and Sherill in human forms, and maybe even Skin once or twice, but the twins… I couldn't recall._

_But they nodded silently, glancing back to the room where the girl slept. They would do as I said; I was confident of that by now. Not just for their own sakes, but for __**hers**__._

"_I'll be leaving then. If you need anything else, call for me." I said, turning away from them. I had had my fun, had seen more than enough of them for one night._

"_And please…" I started, turning my head around to face them as I quietly opened the door, "Clean her up a bit. She's a mess."_

_Debitto snorted, but Jasdero hung his head._

"_Told you so…" the blond whispered to his twin._

"_Quiet!" came the hissed reply._

_And with that, I closed the door behind me, leaving behind two other Noah who might actually be beginning to understand my lifestyle and thoughts._

_Perhaps we weren't so different after all._

* * *

I'm sorry, but I had to put this chapter in. Next chapter, there will be a lot of explaining to do, I promise. But to make up for it, here's that sneak preview I was talking about earlier! Things to come in the future of this fic; or, well, things that I plan on putting in here. I can't guarantee that everything will be put in, but we'll just see what happens.

So, here you are with a few sneak peeks!

- An argument between Jasdero and Debitto

- Combined Jasdebi (Yay! You can't have a Jasdebi fic without it)

- Jasdebi following Toko to school and perhaps pissing off a few students and teachers

- A certain General Cross paying the village a visit

- Toko having small interactions with other members of the Noah Clan

- Cassie meeting Jasdebi again(Can you imagine her reaction? They'd better get running right now.)

- A shower scene!

…

Okay, I'm kidding about that one. (Do you think Jasdebi shower together? OO)

- Toko getting trapped in a cave with Debitto (Don't ask me where I came up with this, it's a long story.)

- Jasdero and Toko actually having a conversation without Debitto interrupting in some way

- Jasdero being cute to get his way(Like with candy, hugs, attention…)

- Jasdero playing with Motoko's hair

And that's about it for now. I'm sure I thought of more earlier but have forgotten it… Sorry. Yeah, just some small things that I could fit into a chapter without endangering the actual plot. Well, some of it.

Anyone have any comments on these? Or suggestions for other things that could be added? I want to make the story funny because it could get really depressing.

But, yeah, that's about it. Sorry it's so short.

Thanks! I hope to get the next chapter up sometime soon!


	8. Lies from the Liars

I am so, so so so so so sorry for taking this long to update. Really, I wanted to update a lot sooner, but I'm still in school, and since it's the last two weeks, all of my teachers have deicided to nail us with millions of projects and other things I never watch to see or touch again. And my parents haven't let me on the computer for the past few days, even though I've had the chapter written out for a while, and wouldn't even let me on long enough to submit it.

I am also sorry for its shortness. But if I had gone on any longer, I would have gotten carried away and then it would be huge. Which, I'm sure, a lot of people would be fine with, but, anyway...

Here you are. This took me forever to write because of writer's block and school and parents other things. I'll try to be quicker with the next one. I've only got two more major projects, so hopefully it shouldn't take too long.

**Disclaimer:** If I owned D.gray-man, Skin and Lulubelle would be together, despite it being the most random pairing ever thought up.

* * *

The lies just kept on coming.

Jasdero was looking nervous, while Debitto was trying to hide his own discomfort in the situation.

"So, which question do you want answered first?" Debitto asked, folding his arms over his bare, pale chest.

Toko looked away from him. "The last one I asked. But first, put on a shirt or something. Both of you." Jasdero, she had noticed, wasn't wearing a shirt either, but at least he was wearing a sort of jacket over his pale skin.

Debitto grinned. "You're wearing it."

"Dammit, Debitto, then just answer the damn question." came the annoyed reply.

Debitto laughed. It was fun messing with her, even if his nerves were bothering him. He had almost forgotten how easily she got irritated. "You've developed quite a mouth."

Something like a growl rumbled in Toko's throat. "The question, Debitto."

The twin's sucky attempt to stall for time had failed. Time for more lies thought up on the spot.

"So, what are _you_ saying happened?" he asked. Maybe if they were lucky, really, really lucky, she might have forgotten something. Anything.

But luck wasn't on their side.

Toko sighed, closing her eyes. Oh boy, here comes the weirdness. "Okay, I know this will sound crazy. But what happened last night… I can't remember anything other than this."

A deep breath. The twins waited, absorbing the silence that had suddenly taken hold of the room…

"Last night… I was walking home from work. But… three men I didn't know pulled me into one of the back alleys. Then…" here, her voice faded slightly, and it took a moment to get it back. The horror of the night before, dream or not, still haunted her.

"I, er… punched one…"

The twins blinked, and if not for the seriousness of the situation, would have burst into fits of laughter. A mere _human_ had dared to harm an akuma. They hadn't been around to see that, but they sure wished they had been. Just to see the look on the stupid thing's face.

But Motoko wasn't done yet.

"He… _it_ got angry. It… changed. Into some sort of monster."

How could she explain? The red, bloodthirsty eyes, the feeling of fear, no, pure and utter terror that overtook her… A demon, a _real_ demon. Terrible, terrifying, torturing her with its death glare…

The twins didn't press on. One look at her face showed that she didn't want to remember. Neither of them blamed her.

"But then you were there…"

This was the part they wanted to hear.

"But, God, you looked so _weird_!"

Blank faces. _Weird_?

"Hey!" Jasdero exclaimed, grabbing Toko by the arm and shaking her slightly, "We're not weird!"

Debitto didn't know whether to be annoyed or to laugh. He decided on the latter.

"Like, how weird?" he asked, grinning his devilish grin, also amused by his brother's reaction. The blond boy could be so focused on appearance; it was funny. Always playing with his hair and trying to perfect his strange style, if you could even call it that.

"It was like… I don't even know how to explain. It was such a weird dream…" again, her voice trailed off.

But thank God she thought it was a dream.

"So, then… what _really_ happened?"

Crap. The much dreaded question.

But the lies came into Debitto's mind on their own.

"You hit your head."

An intake of breath from Motoko.

"Some guys we were with got drunk and were wandering around town. You were unlucky enough to run into them. I think they were just having their sick fun, but you tried to get away, and ended up tripping on something, like the klutz you are. You had the worst heels on. I don't even see how you could walk in the first place."

It wasn't a very good lie. Would it be believable?

But wait… Was that something like understanding on her face?

"We were looking for them. Passed by when you fell. We took you home."

A questioning, suspicious look.

"It does feel like… I fell or something." Toko said slowly. Her wrist ached, as though she's punched a steel wall, and her ankle wasn't any better.

But her head felt fine.

"Are you sure I passed out because I hit my head?" again, she sounded as though she were suspicious.

The twins shrugged simultaneously. "Why else would you pass out?" Debitto asked.

A troubled look crossed her face.

"Could I have… but I don't remember… Then again, I don't usually…" she muttered to herself, but Jasdebi heard.

"Could have what?" Jasdero asked, cocking his head to one side, still holding onto her arm.

Toko shook her head hurriedly. "Oh, nothing." She forced a laugh.

She was obviously lying. But why point this out when they themselves were lying as well?

Millions of questions were flooding Toko's head, but there was no way to ask them all at once. She felt sick; if what she thought had happened, had happened, it might also explain the pounding headache she had.

But… the twins would have noticed, wouldn't they?

"So… you guys didn't notice anything weird?" she asked, glancing at them nervously. If possible, she would rather they not know…

Jasdebi glanced at each other, and shook their heads.

"Other than you getting yourself knocked out, what would be strange for us to see?"

"Nothing…" again, an obvious lie. But they would let this one slide for now.

The questions started flowing. "What the hell are you two wearing?" she asked, giving them strange both a strange look. Jasdebi frowned.

"What, something's wrong with the way we're dressed?" Debitto asked, challenging her.

Jasdero was running his tongue across the stitches that crossed over his mouth nervously. What was wrong with the way they were dressed? His grip tightened slightly, and Toko glanced over at him.

"Let go." She said, though not harshly. It was… too strange. Or maybe that was the wrong word. Unnerving. Yes. Her stomach felt tight.

Jasdero blinked, slightly surprised, and let go, backing away slightly, and mumbled an apology. Something like fear clutched at his mind; fear that she would hate them, despise them for what they were, for being gone so long.

It must be so strange for her, he realized. They'd been 'dead' for almost four years now, and now… Suddenly, they just popped right back into her life, unannounced, with no explanation as to _why_.

But she gave him a weak smile, and turned away for a second, running a hand through her tangled hair. Then she did a double take.

"Is your _mouth stitched_?!" she practically shouted her question, her eyes wide as she stared at the blond twin.

Jasdero blinked. "You just… noticed that?"

"What the _hell _have you done to yourself? _Why_? What are you _thinking_?" Toko exclaimed, grabbing Jasdero by the shoulders and shaking him.

Debitto couldn't help but laugh his ass off. One second, everything had been so serious, almost uncomfortably so, and now she was freaking out about Jasdero's mouth?

Toko turned to glare at him. "What are you laughing at? You think it's funny? You let him do this?"

This only made Debitto laugh harder. "You sound like a _mother_!"

Jasdero only stared blankly at her, slightly dizzy from being shaken around. What was she so upset about?

"What, you don't like it?" Debitto asked, still grinning, making Toko scowl.

"And you two are wearing _make-up_. God, what has _happened_ to you?" she asked, letting go of Jasdero and taking a few steps back from the two.

But the only answer she could get was a shrug of Debitto's shoulders, and a questioning look from Jasdero.

This wasn't going anywhere. Toko closed her eyes, sighed, and asked the question they had really been dreading. The one they had no answer -or more accurately, lie- to.

"And where… where have you two been these years?"

The two froze, all playfulness immediately gone. She didn't sound angry, as she had a few seconds before. No, the pain was evident in her voice, audible. Had she really suffered that much? Surely not, right?

Maybe it had been hard at first, but she had gotten over it. That's why she was still here, able to smile and carry out her life as if they had never existed.

_Never existed…_

And for once, there was no lie they could tell her.

"Um, can we just… forget that question? For now, at least?" Debitto asked, giving Jasdero a look that Toko couldn't interpret.

Another sigh from the girl. She looked exhausted.

She was.

"Fine… I just… I just need some time to think." She sounded weak. Were they just making life hard for her now? Would them reentering her life, change it? Or worse, put her in harm?

And they knew the answer to that. Neither of them liked it.

Toko was continuing. "I'm going to… go take a shower or something." Gosh, she felt horrible. Her muscles ached and she felt like she hadn't slept in a few days. Which, she hadn't. She stood up, careful with her ankle.

"We'll be waiting."

Those simple words, spoken by the two, made her stop, back to them. They stared at her, curious.

An emotion she couldn't understand, couldn't quite name, had settled down in Toko's chest. Not painful, not sad. How strange. A faint smile was playing about her lips as she started again, away from them. Her voice was soft…

"Thank you."

* * *

There. And now, the sleep that I haven't had in four days. What's with me and never getting enough sleep?


	9. Anger Issues

Sorry this took so long! I'm finishing up exams and working on a million other things, so I didn't have a lot of time to work on this. Originally, I was going to make it a longer chapter, but that would have taken a lot longer to get to you guys, so I decided to keep it shorter to get it to you guys sooner.

You remember that shower scene I was telling you about? Weeeell, it still didn't happen. xD Sorry.

I like this chapter. It was fun to write. Sorry if Toko came out a little... pissy. She's kind of like that. ;

So, enjoy!

* * *

The shower water was warm and soothing to her aching muscles and confused mind. She let it run over her, temporarily leaving behind the worry that the two boys had caused her by returning so suddenly back into her life.

They had their secrets; she had hers.

As she had entered the small bathroom and taken a look at herself in the mirror, she had groaned softly. She really _was_ a mess.

Dirt and dust had somehow managed to get into her hair, and she knew that it would take more than a comb to tame the wild mess. Her head would be aching by the time she was done pulling and unknotting it.

A long cut ran across her cheek, and a bit of dried blood still lingered there. She had looked closer; thankfully, it wasn't deep, and would heal quickly enough. But it looked as though it had bled more… Had the twins cleaned it up?

A large bruise covered her palm, and she had grimaced as she saw it, wishing she could remember what had happened to her the night before. In truth, she didn't really believe the twins at all.

Because she could tell they were lying.

Before they had started their story, she had racked her brain for her memories of them. Even back when they were kids, they had been known to be liars, and she had eventually been able to tell their truth from tall tale.

Each of them did it differently. When Debitto lied, he would try and change the subject, and usually ended up scowling or glaring at you for something. He didn't show his nervousness very easily, and was the harder of the two to see through the deception.

Jasdero was a bit easier; he didn't really think about lying at all. It was easy to tell if he was nervous, and he usually wouldn't keep eye contact. This would include him hanging his head, turning away from you, playing with his hair…

But this wasn't the only reason why she didn't believe them.

Her dream… however crazy it had been, had matched up with the past. She remembered.

The crosses on their foreheads. Their eyes. It had been the same, back then. That day it all changed.

And from her dream… the guns, though looking normal at first, had shot out those fireballs. Could it have anything to do with, back on that day, when her mother's sleeve had caught fire on its own? Everyone had been so certain that it was their doing, but she had refused to believe it.

Until now.

The shower water shut off, still warm, hot almost. She stepped out, wrapping a towel around herself, and stared at Debitto's shirt that now rested, folded up neatly, on the bathroom sink. She 

sighed, not wanting to think about how they had got in on her, or what they had done with the shirt that she had been wearing.

Normally she would walk, wrapped in a towel, back into her bedroom to change into her clothes, but with the two boys in the house now, for obvious reasons, she was not going to walk out there with only a towel wrapped around her. She had brought her clothes into the bathroom beforehand, to change there.

She took her time, part of her dreading going back into that room. There were so many questions she wanted answered, not enough time, some of them she knew she would never ask. Although it didn't completely bother her that they didn't want to tell her where they'd been, she was only human. She wanted to know. But she wasn't going to force anything out of them.

But she couldn't put off seeing them any longer; the bathroom door was opened, letting the steam out and the cool morning air in, sending a sort of shiver through her body at the sudden change. The sun that had blessed them with its presence had left them again; the sky was dark with storm clouds, and the air smelled like rain.

Toko liked rain; she preferred it over the sun. Of course, this was partly because her pale skin burned so easily, and she had to try and avoid the hot rays that turned her skin red and painful. It would rain, it seemed, and storm too. A special added bonus. And then, the next day, she'd have to walk to school in the wet mud and…

Wait, school? Then that would mean that it was…

"Debitto! Jasdero!" she yelled, sprinting down the hall, hair still wet and soaking the back of her shirt. She turned the corner into the living room where the two sat, facing each other, seeming to have been speaking to each other seconds before.

"Woah, what is it?" Debitto asked, standing up, looking alarmed. Jasdero's eyes were wide, and his mouth hung open slightly.

"What day is it?!" Toko asked, positively freaking out. Jasdebi stared at her for a moment.

"Um… Sunday?" Jasdero answered, wondering if she was going to get mad at them for something. Was it somehow their fault what day of the week it was?

A hiss escaped the girl's mouth. "Oh, shit…" she cursed. "Shit, shit, shit…"

"What's wrong with Sunday?" Jasdero asked, tilting his head to the side, curious.

"Work! I've got work today!" Toko exclaimed, looking at the clock in the corner of the room; already past noon. _Way_ late for work.

She scrambled up, running back to her room in a rush, followed by the confused twins.

"Work? Since when have _you_worked? You're the laziest person I know." Debitto said, watching her search through the mess of a room. "What are you looking for?"

"My uniform! I was wearing it last night!" Toko answered frantically, ignoring Debitto's insult.

"Oh… you mean that dirty thing that we burned?" Jasdero asked.

She stopped, looking absolutely furious.

Uh-oh.

"_Burned_? You _burned it_?" The twins backed away from the woman.

"W-what's wrong with that? It was covered in blood and dirt." Debitto stuttered, glancing at Jasdero, who looked terrified.

"Idiots! I need that for work! My manager is going to be _so_angry with me! What gives you the right to destroy my things?" she yelled, advancing towards them. Debitto narrowed his eyes, annoyed now.

"We're sorry… Dero's sorry…" Jasdero whimpered, lowering his eyes. This didn't seem to be enough.

"God, and I'm late, and I haven't even called in or anything! Do you know how bad this will be for me? Maybe you don't understand, but I need this job! It's all I have, the only thing that's earning me money."

"Look, we're sorry! We didn't know! Don't get so bitchy about it!" Debitto voice came out almost in a snarl, causing Toko to shrink back slightly, surprised and slightly fearful. Debitto immediately calmed down, turning away from her.

"Come on, Jasdero." he muttered, grabbing his brother's arm.

"Where are you going?" Toko asked, finally calm herself. Well, not really calm, but Debitto had at least managed to stop some of her anger. He had almost… no, he _had_ scared her. Just for a moment. But enough to stop her from going on an angry rampage.

"To take a shower." Debitto answered simply, pulling his brother along with him to the bathroom. Jasdero followed obediently, though he glanced back at Toko.

"Wait, you're not showering _together_, are you?" Toko asked, looking slightly alarmed.

"Why not? What's wrong with that?" Debitto asked, defiant, stopping.

"Hell no! You guys may be brothers, but you're not _that_ close!"

"How would you know how close we are?"

"Well, if you _are_ that close, you're not supposed to be!"

"Ugh, would you stop nagging?" Debitto yelled, letting go of Jasdero. "Fine! I'll just go, if it will shut you up!"

Toko only glared after him as the black haired boy stomped off to the bathroom, leaving her alone with Jasdero. It wasn't like she was angry or anything; more like, it was a little, well, shocking, and she had overreacted. Damn, she'd have to apologize later…

She let out a long sigh, and sat down on the couch, glaring at the brush in her hand. Now to begin the task of wrestling with the tangled mess. Not something she looked forward to, which was why she usually didn't really bother with it; it was easier to just pull it back and ignore it.

Jasdero stood where Debitto had left him, unsure of what to do; was she still angry? He didn't want to endure any kind of wrath from her. But he decided to risk it, walking slowly towards the couch. She didn't react, just raised the brush to her head as though it were some dangerous object. He sat down next to her.

She yanked the comb through the long black mess, wincing in pain, but continuing with the process. With each tug, her eyes would narrow, her head already aching, but she bore with it. Still, it didn't even seem to be getting better at all.

"Can Dero do it?"

His voice startled her, and she stopped to look at the boy. He was looking at her nervously, fidgeting slightly. Silently, she handed him the brush. It would still hurt like hell, but, well, what was the difference between him doing it and her?

She was expecting the usual yanking that sent waves of pain through her head, but to her surprise, nothing. The comb slid easily enough through her hair. Jasdero placed one hand on her head, steadying her, and ran the comb through the black mess. Yet, somehow, as he repeated the ritual, down, back up, through it, up again, it wasn't looking so… horrible anymore.

Almost nice.

The repetitive motion was soothing. Toko found herself closing her eyes and relaxing, but noted that Jasdero kept brushing, even though her hair should have been sufficiently rid of knots and tangles by then. The shower water could be heard running, which meant she would be rid of Debitto for a few minutes, at least. The faintest smile was playing at her lips.

She was caught off guard when Jasdero stopped the soothing ritual, and, to her surprise and slight discomfort, rested his head on hers.

"W-what are you doing, Jasdero?"

"… Jasdebi missed you, you know."

A small intake of breath from her. "What?"

"Dero knows that Debi may be acting like a jerk… But Dero doesn't think that he means it. Debi just… doesn't know how to act now. In front of you." The blond boy said slowly, closing his make-up covered eyes. Her hair was still slightly damp and cool against his cheek, but he didn't mind.

Something seemed to catch in Toko's throat, and where she normally would have protested about anyone being that close to her, she didn't. She swallowed, unsure of what to do or say.

But Jasdero was done being that close to her, possibly sensing her discomfort. He sat up straight, taking her hair in his hands, and began running his fingers through it silently. Toko sighed.

"So… if I can't ask you where you've been, can I ask you why you came back?" her question was quiet.

Jasdero took a while to respond, still running his fingers through the now smooth, untangled hair.

"Jasdebi are… looking for something." he eventually answered. The way he said it made it clear that he couldn't say what it was they were searching for.

Another sigh from the girl. "Is there any way I could help?" Wait, help? That was strange. She wasn't usually one to meddle in someone else's affairs like that.

But Jasdero just shook his head, and offered no further explanation.

"Then… once you find this… thing… What are you going to do?" She asked this question simply to confirm what she was already sure the answer would be.

"We'll have to… leave." Yes, that was the answer she had known it would be.

"Will you ever come back?" What a stupid question. She mentally kicked herself. Way to go, making herself look like some weak willed fool of a girl. Now she looked like she was actually _enjoying_ their stay.

But, then again, maybe she was…

"Of cou-"

"No." the voice was not Jasdero's. The two sitting on the couch turned around to see the speaker.

No surprise really that it was Debitto. His hair was dripping wet, and the make-up had been washed off of his face. Now fully clothed, wearing the shirt that Toko had given back to him, he looked down at the two, an almost annoyed expression on his face.

"We're not coming back." he continued, "This is it. Enjoy us while you can."

Toko's eyes narrowed as she cast a death glare at him.

"But why, Debi?" Jasdero asked, still sitting down.

"We have no reason to come back and look after a weak girl like her." Debitto said, refusing to look at Toko. A short silence followed his words.

"How _dare_ you!" Toko's voice cut through the silence like a knife. "How _dare_ you call me _weak_, you stupid brat! You have no _idea_ what I've had to go through!" she hissed, furious, barely holding herself back from trying to harm him in some way.

But Debitto ignored her. "Get in the shower, Jasdero." he all but ordered his twin. Jasdero gave Toko a sorry glance, but said nothing, as he obeyed his brother.

"Listen to me, you stupid bastard!" Toko raised her voice, standing up, her hands clenched into fists. Debitto glanced at her.

"We don't need you."

Those four words cut through her, sharper than and blade could. She found her anger draining from the emotional wound that they had inflicted, and she sat back down, staring at the boy.

And then she was gone, back up off the couch, and out the door, the anger quickly returning. Debitto sighed, something unlike him.

"Why'd you do that, Debi?" Jasdero asked.

"I don't know, I just… I can't help it. Whenever I see a human, I just get angry. She's no different." Debitto half growled, running a hand through his wet hair, looking annoyed. Annoyed at himself. "I just keep screwing up."

"You were fine earlier." Jasdero pointed out.

"Yeah, well, she wasn't annoying me earlier. Ugh, I don't know what to do…"

"Tell her you're sorry?"

"Are you kidding? She must be so pissed at me right now."

"Do it anyway. And don't get angry this time."

"What, you ordering me around now? Anyway, I wouldn't know what to say…"

"It's easy enough for Dero."

"I don't see how you can do it."

Jasdero only shrugged. "Dero's going to shower then. Debi can decide what to do by himself."

Debitto snorted. "Oh, thanks for the help."

But Jasdero only grinned, giggling quietly, and left his brother alone in the room.

* * *

And there you are. Next time, let's see if Debitto can make up for being an idiot. And what _will_ Jasdero be doing in the shower? Will he be able to figure out how to wash his hair by himself? Tune in next time! :D

If I get some spare time, I might also post some background information about the OCs, including Toko, Cassie, and both of their parents.


	10. Swimming Lessons

This took a while to get out, didn't it? Sorry. I've been slacking off. From now on, I'm going to try and update about once a week. Of course, it helps when I get reviews. It really motivates me.

Oh, and I'd also like to point something out about Toko's relationship with the two; yeah, I've noticed that this seems to be leaning more towards a DebittoxToko pairing. I've been neglecting Jasdero a bit, I think. Sorry, Dero! ;A; But it's still a pairing of both of them with her. She views them as annoying friends and nothing more, at this point. Jasdebi's feelings will be coming out soon, I believe.

So, yeah, now that that's clear. No more waiting; enjoy chapter ten.

**Disclaimer**: No D.gray-man ownage for me.

* * *

She sat on the high ledge, dangling her bare feet above the lake. If she looked, she would have been able to see the house down through the trees, but she didn't bother. Here, the land sloped upwards, leaving a five foot high ledge above the water. Toko stared into the murky mess, getting as close as she could without risking falling in.

Bastard.

They'd better be gone when she got back. Both of them. She didn't want to see them anymore. They were only causing trouble for her. And she wasn't about to listen to Jasdero's reasoning. Debitto wasn't a jerk; he was a complete and total asshole that she wanted nothing to do with.

The sky was cloudy and grey, and she was sure that it was going to rain. Indeed, the smell of the rain, so crisp in the early afternoon, was almost overpowering. Above her, the trees were swaying with the stronger than usual wind, dancing to one of nature's songs that only they could hear.

It all would have been beautiful, if she hadn't been in such a bad mood. Damn Debitto… she wouldn't forgive him for this…

"Oi, Motoko."

Damn.

"Don't fall in."

"Maybe I would prefer that to your company." Toko hissed out, refusing to look at the black haired boy as he sat down on the ledge next to her. He was lucky she had responded at all.

"Ouch." Debitto winced at the harshness in her voice. But he deserved it. Somehow, he'd managed to control some of his anger, enough to swallow his pride for this.

"Look…" he went on, wishing she'd at least look at him, "Would it help if I said I was so-"

"No, it wouldn't."

He cursed quietly. "Look, would you just-"

"No. Stop talking to me."

"Motoko-"

"Stop calling me that."

Enough. He grabbed her by her shoulders, forcing to turn towards him, but soon wished he hadn't. If expressions could kill, he'd be pushing up daisies. She was _pissed_.

"Whatever your name is then, just _listen_ to me." he nearly snarled, his anger flaring up again. He pushes it back down, continuing.

"I'm _sorry_. I was wrong. I was a jerk."

"You're an asshole." Toko snarled back, correcting him.

"_Fine_ then, I was an asshole. I was angry. So can you just drop it?" he was nearly pleading now.

She was still glaring at him, but she didn't seem as angry as before. Was that a good thing? Hopefully…

"Let go of me and I might think about forgiving you."

This relieved him. He obeyed, taking his hands off of her. "There, better?"

He didn't have time to react as she stood up, and then, her hands we pushing against his back. His eyes widened, and before he could let out a yell, the water was coming up to face him all too fast.

The splash he made was big enough to hit Toko in the face, but she didn't care; she was wearing the biggest grin she had in a while. She had been hoping that he would let out some kind of girly scream, but she was still happy with the results; a sputtering, furious Debitto, trying his best to swim with those ridiculous boots and all of his clothes on.

The water was freezing, and it was some of the nastiest stuff he had ever tasted. He spit it out as he reemerged at the surface after a brief submersion; though not brief enough to keep the water out of his nose. He snorted, narrowing his eyes at the burning pain. Funny, how water would cause that pain like fire in your nose.

"Y-y-you _b-bitch_!" he screeched at her, his teeth chattering. This only made the girl start to laugh.

"You look like a half-drowned rat!" she yelled down at him, giggling furiously.

"Y-you are s-s-so gonna get it." the 'rat' growled, doing his best to swim to the edge. However, it was too steep to climb up, forcing him to awkwardly dog-paddle to a shallower area near the shore.

He climbed out, drenched and shivering, glaring at Toko, who stood up on the ledge, grinning at him. His coat and shirt clung to his wet body, and his hair was plastered to his face. Another shower would be needed. A nice, hot one. And then he'd beat the shit out of her.

She didn't move as he slowly approached her, giving her a look that probably would have sent other people running.

"V-very f-funny."

"Yeah, it was."

"You l-little-"

"What, you don't want to be forgiven?"

Debitto was baring his teeth in a snarl. "Oh, s-so we're even n-now?" he asked sarcastically.

"Hmm, maybe. I'll think about it."

"If you weren't going to f-forgive m-me, then why did you d-d-do that?!" he yelled wrapping his arms around himself, hoping for some extra warmth. It didn't help.

"Because I wanted to."

"Bitch!"

"But you know, I don't think I'm as angry now. Thanks for that."

"Don't use me as y-your anger relief s-system!" Debitto threw his wet jacket at her; it wasn't helping to keep him warm, and if anything, it was making it worse. He glanced down at himself with an annoyed look. Keep cool, keep cool… Don't kill her…

He took a deep breath, still shivering, and sat back down on the ledge, much to Toko's surprise.

"You know I can just push you off again, right?" she asked, sitting down again.

"You'd better not." Debitto growled. "Because I'll be t-taking you with me next time."

She grinned, but quickly turned serious again.

"You _are_ coming back, right?"

A snort from the boy. "Hell if I know. It all depends on how things go. We really can't say."

"But the way you say that makes it sound like you'll try."

"… Yeah, I g-guess so." Damn, it was cold. "Get over here, stupid."

Toko let out a small gasp of surprise as Debitto grabbed her and wrapped his arms around her, using her body for a heat source. She struggled, swearing a bit, but he refused to let go, and she eventually calmed down.

"Idiot."

"Just stop moving."

"You're getting me wet."

"It's _your _fault that I'm wet in the first place."

The girl huffed, but said nothing. Debitto's shivering had decreased, but it would soon start up again.

Seeing as it had started raining.

Debitto cursed, grabbing his jacket again. Though it was still wet, it would do well enough to keep the rain from further soaking them. Not that it really mattered. They were both wet by then.

With Debitto's jacket draped over their heads, they sat in silence, watching the rain bring life to the green forest. Tiny drops splashed and sparkled on the water's surface, and water dripped lazily from the leaves of plants and trees.

The silence between them didn't last for long.

"Hey, Motoko?"

"You're still calling me that? Call me 'Toko' from now on."

"Why? You were fine with it when we were kids."

Glancing over at her from beneath the jacket, Debitto instantly wondered if he'd asked something wrong. She had bitten her lip, and looked uncomfortable.

"Ah, no, sorry. You don't have to-"

"Because it's what _she_ called me." her voice was quiet.

"… She?"

Silence.

"Oh, you mean your mother."

Toko nodded.

"But… what happened to her? Dero and I were wondering… Since we didn't want to risk running into the bitch so soon. I'm sure she hates us. Well, everyone here does. And…"

Shit, why was he still talking? Shut up, shut up, it was clearly bothering her. But he couldn't seem to stop the words as they entered his mind and headed straight out of his mouth. Damn, he cursed himself, why was he such an idiot?

But her answer was quick.

"She's dead."

Another awful silence.

"Since when?"

"About a year ago."

"How did it happen?"

Something like a growl rumbled in the back of her throat. "Do you ever stop asking?"

"I just want to know…"

The girl sighed, and without warning, stood up, taking Debitto's jacket with her.

"Hey, hey, what are you doing?!" Debitto asked, cussing as he was pelted with the cold rain falling from the grey sky.

But Toko was already walking away. But not towards the house. Strange. She was heading further up the slope, being careful where she stepped as to not accidentally slip and tumble all the way back down to Debitto.

At the top of the slope, it evened out, and there was another ledge and drop-off above the lake. Further up there, the ledge above the water was about ten feet night. Halfway up her climb, Toko turned around, jacket draped over her head to protect her from the rain, and motioned for Debitto to follow. Debitto, surprised, obeyed.

He glanced over the edge as he joined her at the top, hoping that she wasn't going to push him in from this height. She stood, looking down into the dark waters below. It seemed as though the water was deeper over here as well.

"This spot."

The two words didn't make sense. He gave her a questioning look.

"This is where she died."

A pause.

"Oh."

He looked over at her face, and blinked in surprise. She was smiling; not a sad smile, full of sorrow.

She was smiling like she was _happy_.

"She'd been drinking all night, and happened to fall in from this point. I found her in the morning."

Humans truly were disgusting creatures. She truly looked happy. Debitto found himself staring down at the water with a sick look on his face.

"You weren't the one to push her in, were you?" he asked, refusing to look at her.

But when he did look up, he saw that her smile had immediately vanished.

"How dare you say something like that!" she snarled at him, making him flinch.

"Sorry, sorry…" he muttered, turning back to stare at the water. He didn't like the idea of falling from here.

She let out a huff, and turned away from him, still angry. God, he hated her temper. It was something new, something she'd developed in the time that they had been absent. And it wasn't something that either of them were used to dealing with. Sure, the Earl could get angry, but it was different from Toko's fuming.

"Look…" he started.

"Debi!" a cheerful voice shouted from right behind the boy, causing him to yell in surprise and topple towards the dark water. For the second time that day, the water loomed closer, mocking him as time seemed to slow for his decent.

But the water wouldn't have him a second time. A pair of hands grabbed onto each of his arms, and with a little effort, pulled him back into the wet grass.

"Debi, are you alright?" Jasdero asked, worried, kneeling down beside his brother. Debitto still stared ahead of him, his heart beating franticly, both from the shock of Jasdero popping up and scaring him, and from nearly falling face-first into the murky lake.

Toko was breathing a bit harder than usual. Jasdero had surprised her as well; she had let out a high-pitched squeak, and would have proceeded to round her temper on the boy if Debitto hadn't nearly fallen into the lake again.

Debitto finally reacted.

"Dammit, Dero! Don't do that!" he shouted, though he wasn't really angry. More annoyed at Jasdero's grin. It seemed to be suggesting something, though he didn't understand. Then Jasdero glanced over at Toko with the same grin.

"So… what were you two doing out here, hii?" Jasdero asked, his hair wet from the shower, and giggled a bit. Debitto's face went red as he understood his brother's grin.

"Talking. What's it to you?" he responded quickly, and risked a glance at Toko, who was looking indifferent. She didn't seem to think anything of the boy's giggling.

His brother laughed some more. "Talking? 'Bout what?" he asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Stuff."

"What stuff?"

Debitto glanced over at Toko again. She looked a bit nervous, and he could guess that she didn't want to talk about it again. He could tell Jasdero later what they'd been talking about.

"Nothing. Drop it."

Jasdero sighed, looking disappointed.

"Then Dero will talk with you."

It was Debitto's turn to sigh now. Jasdero stuck his tongue out at him, through the stitches, and grabbed Toko's hand. Both Toko and Debitto looked surprised and slightly alarmed, but Jasdero took no notice of this, and pulled Toko down to sit next to him. The rain had let up, though the sun still didn't come out of hiding, and there was no more need for Debitto's wet jacket. Jasdero took a handful of Toko's hair and began braiding it.

"By the way, Debi, why are you so wet and muddy, hii?" Jasdero asked after a moment. Debitto scowled.

"She thought it would be fun to relieve her stress by pushing me in." he muttered, making Jasdero laugh.

"Debi's an idiot."

Toko laughed, obviously agreeing, and Debitto scowled.

"Hey, hey, Toko?" Jasdero asked, still braiding her hair.

"Huh?"

"Dero has some more questions."

There was a pause from the girl.

"Okay, ask away."

* * *

And there you are! It's kind of strange point to leave it off at, though.

Remember, I luffs the reviews! Hope this was enjoyed!


	11. Falling Inside the Black

Well, I actually kept up my goal of getting it out Sunday. Even if it's twenty minutes until midnight. Still!

I had trouble at first, working on this, and I hope it's not too confusing. It's supposed to show a bit more about Toko's personality and past, but I'm not sure I did the best part with it. I don't know.

**Disclaimer**: No ownage.

* * *

I was slightly nervous. But not enough for me to deny the boy's request. Even with the stitched mouth, strange clothing, and even stranger attitude, the pleading way he stared at me completely won me over. In his own, strange way, Jasdero was… cute. It made me squirm in my mind, and our physical contact didn't help either.

It wasn't him though; I felt the same way with Debitto whenever he grabbed be, however violently. It was like this with everyone. I couldn't stand it; physical contact, that is. Maybe because I'd had too many bad experiences with it, or maybe just not enough of it.

But I bore with it, vaguely wondering why this boy was so obsessed with hair. Not just obsessed; good at dealing with it. My hair was my own worst enemy, and he'd tamed it in seconds. I let my own questions pass silent through my head as I waited for his.

They were tougher that I'd thought they would be, for me, even though they should have been easy questions to answer.

"Motoko's mother used to make her go to church; why don't you go? You work instead, hii."

I sighed, closing my eyes. How to explain…

"Well, do you want a full rant, or do you want to make it quick?" I finally asked, glancing over at the blond boy.

Jasdero blinked his now make-up free eyes, and shrugged. "Short?"

This was easier for me.

"Well, for one, I hate that place." I started. But that wasn't really the half of it.

Jasdero cocked his head to the side, and again, the word _adorable_ ran though my head. I pushed it away quickly.

"Why?" I was surprised that Debitto was still silent to this point. Looking over at him, I saw that he was watching, waiting for the answer. Another sigh from me.

"Well, how should I put this without it turning into a full on rant…"

"We don't mind a rant, as long as we get an answer." Debitto finally spoke. I knew his silence wouldn't last long.

"Well then, let's start…"

They didn't know that my rants could last forever if I didn't stop myself. They'd better sit tight, because I wasn't going to spare them now.

"First of all, those rich bastards that run the place don't care at all for the people who go. They live off the money and donations of the stupid believers of their fake Gods. Those people are all suckered into believing the shit that they feed them. How could I _not_ hate it all?"

The twins blinked simultaneously, but were silent as I continued.

"And then there's the people who go there; I think I hate them just as much. They put up fake acts of being good people while they're there, but they're all really just bastards. And the few that are good people, and let me stress the _few_ part, are so completely devoted to that place that it makes me feel sick."

I grimaced as I thought about it.

"And then there's the actual _God_."

Now they nodded. I guessed that they would understand this part well enough; after all, the so called God of this region had his believers trying to kill them four years ago. Plus, they didn't seem like people who would believe in some guy sitting up on his holy throne, telling a bunch of village people what to do.

"If any God existed for this place, wouldn't it be better? We have good seasons for harvest, and bad seasons. It has nothing to do with the amount of tribute idiots pay, or about any kind of sick sacrifices." I made a sick face. 'Sacrifice' wasn't a word I liked. It reminded me too much of what, until this morning, I thought had happened to the two.

"You don't believe in this village's God?" Jasdero asked, finishing up braiding my hair. I usually liked to leave my hair loose, and I certainly never would have braided it, but I allowed it for the time.

I responded with a forced laugh. "Are you kidding? I don't believe in _any_ God." I said, and frowned, picking up a small rock and tossing it absentmindedly into the water. It made a larger splash than I thought it would, the ripples spreading out from the entering point and slowly disappeared as it lost the energy.

The twins seemed surprised, which surprised me. They didn't seem like the type to believe in such things.

"Why don't you believe?" Debitto asked, actually looking interested. Putting my pervious rant aside, I went right into the next.

"I mean, look at this place, this world. Humans in general. Humans are filthy, dirty creatures. They enjoy the suffering of others, care only for themselves, make use of the weak… If there was a God, would he really let the world come to this? Wouldn't it be so much easier to just… get rid of the evil to make it a better place?" I asked.

I noticed the looks on their faces; I couldn't name the emotions that crossed them at the same time. If anything, it was like… a mixture between shock, amazement, and… agreement.

"But it's not only bad people." Jasdero pointed out. I nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, but overall, humans are evil. Those who aren't are few enough that they can be overlooked easily."

I didn't know why they were staring at me like that. It was unnerving.

"What?" I asked, getting annoyed, but Debitto just shook his head.

"Most humans don't understand that." He said, looking thoughtful. That was new. Debitto had learned to use his brain while they were gone.

I only shrugged. "Yeah, well, most humans are so busy with thinking that God will save them from everything, that they don't stop to think that they could be wrong."

I looked over to see Debitto grinning. Something I had said, he seemed to enjoy. Perhaps I had said too much…

"But y'know, it's not as easy as God just waving his arm and making the world perfect."

His words surprised me. I raised an eyebrow.

"You talk like you know a lot about God." I said, leaning back against the wet and muddy grass. I was already dirty; a bit more mud wouldn't hurt.

"Hm… well, what would you do if I told you that God is trying to destroy this world? That He's sent people to do it for him?" he asked, leaning back as well, keeping eye contact with me. It was unnerving. Jasdero was silent, and I glanced over to see him staring nervously at his brother.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, quieter than usual.

"Ah, oh, nothing. I'm just wondering what you'd do if there really _was_ a God, and he really _was_ getting rid of the filthy humans."

I swallowed. He seemed so… _serious_. Why did it feel like what he was saying was true? But, no… I shook my head. It's not true, of course.

So I only shrugged. "I don't know. Why ask something like that? I can't answer that."

There was a long silence, which I was tempted to break, but did not. Jasdero was the one to speak up first.

"We should go inside…" he said quietly, nervously. It was getting windy, and it would probably start raining again soon. I wondered what time it was… Neither Debitto nor I spoke, but we both nodded in agreement. This seemed to please the blond, who stood up with a cute smile, and started to descend the slope to the house.

Debitto was next to push off from the ground, with a barely audible sigh. I don't know why, but I expected him to at least offer me a hand to help me up; I did not receive this. I glared up at him, pushing my hands against the wet grass, and stood up, nearly slipping.

Debitto was already halfway down the slope before I started my way down. I glared down at him, but I knew he wouldn't notice; his back was to me. After only a few steps, I noticed some movement in the ferns a bit to my right.

I stopped, staring at the scene unfolding before me, so small, tiny, almost insignificant. A small robin, not yet ready for flight, was flapping its wing, hopping around on the ground. A frantic chirping came from its beak. It seemed as though it had fallen from a nearby nest in an attempt to fly, but had failed. I looked up to see an adult robin circling the sky above, but it dared not approach.

Danger was near.

I saw the shadow of the stalking beast before the actual animal. The robin, too focused on its frantic calling, did not see the creature that would cause its death. I watched as the cat, such a small, seemingly harmless creature, pounced from the ferns, taking out the bird with one crunch of its jaws onto its head. The bird's last, shrill cry, though quiet to the ears of a human, was so terrified, echoing the pain of that last, ending blow.

I did nothing, only stared as a life ended before me.

"Oi, what's taking so long?" footsteps sloshed through the mud as Debitto approached, and leaned over my shoulder to see what I was staring at. "What's that?"

The cat was already devouring the bird, half starved, relishing the taste of the blood and meat, probably its first decent meal in a few days. Bloodied feathers stuck to its mouth as it tore through the little meat on the poor mess that had once been a bird.

I heard a disgusted sound from Debitto. "Nasty…" he muttered. He was silent though, watching it with me. My eyes never left the scene.

The cat, after finishing about half of the bird, picked it up in its red covered mouth, and carried it away to a place where it could fully enjoy it without the cried of the distraught adult robin still circling overhead.

Debitto sighed, and I finally turned towards the house, ignoring the boy. He quickly caught up to me.

"Hey, couldn't you have stopped that?" he asked, walking alongside me, making sure not to slip on the grass.

"Yes." My answer was quick.

"Then why didn't you?"

I was surprised. I thought it was obvious. Well, it seemed obvious to me. "Why should I? It's the way the world works; the weak fall prey to the strong."

Debitto opened his mouth to respond, but Jasdero's voice drifted over to interrupt him.

"Motoko! There, um, someone here, hii! Please come quickly!" He didn't sound happy.

Leaving Debitto behind, I quickened my pace towards the house. As I neared, I recognized the figure who was advancing towards the frightened boy.

"Cassie?" I asked as I neared. Jasdero, who was staring at the furious blond girl with terrified eyes, wasted no time in backing away from the girl and hiding behind me.

"Scary…" I heard him whimper. I heard Debitto approaching now as well.

"Toko! It's those two! Those freaky little perverts from the other day! What are they doing here?" Cassie asked, looking both furious and alarmed. She was wearing her work uniform.

"Um, er…"

"Oi! It's blondie from the other day! Did you miss us?" I didn't have to look to know that Debitto was grinning his head off.

"Shut up, idiot!" I turned, hissing to him. He ignored me, walking past and going right up to Cassie.

Even _I_ was terrified by Cassie's wrath. How could that idiot just walk right up to her like that?

"You… I'm going to kill you, and beat you so badly, no one will ever be able to recognize your bloodied corpse." Cassie snarled, grabbing Debitto by his wet shirt. He just kept on grinning.

"Go ahead, bitch. If you can."

"Stop it, stop it!" I yelled, stepping away from the cowering Jasdero and yanking Debitto out of Cassie's grasp.

Cassie turned her fury onto me, and I flinched.

"_Why _are you protecting him? Did you hear me? Those are the guys who you said you would beat up!"

Debitto blinked, then burst out laughing. "_You_? Beat us up? As if!"

I turned to glare at him. "Ungrateful little bastard."

He shut up.

"If you think I'm not going to kill them, you're _way_ wrong. I've got high heels and I'm not afraid to use them." Cassie said, raising up one heeled foot for effect. I didn't bother glaring at Debitto as he laughed again.

"Look, Cassie, I know these guys are jerks, assholes, perverts, bastards-"

"You're not helping!" Debitto yelled.

"Shut it! Well, what I'm trying to say is, they're not all bad. Maybe."

"_Maybe_?"

"Okay, fine, they're bad, but don't kill them. Please."

"_Why_? Plus, why weren't you at work today? You didn't call, didn't tell anyone. I was worried! That's why I came to see what was wrong, and I find you handing with _these_ two!" Cassie said, sounding hurt. I felt guilty.

"Look… I had an… accident last night. I didn't wake up until noon. Really, I'm sorry." I said quietly, lowering my head to stare at the ground.

"Wait… Accident? Don't tell me… you had another-?" Cassie asked, anger instantly shoved aside for a more important matter.

I quickly shushed her, but it was too late.

"Another what?" Jasdero asked, gaining confidence enough to speak up. Cassie shot him a glare that instantly shut him up.

"Look, I don't remember. All I know is that I probably wouldn't be okay if it weren't for these two." I said. I would explain everything to her later, where the twins couldn't listen. It was selfish of me, but I... I didn't want them to know.

But it was inevitable.

I felt the strange feeling building up in me. No, please God, not here, not now.

Cassie went on, oblivious. "Still, these two assholes? They're worthless!"

"Hey, watch it, bitch!"

"Cassie…" I started, my voice barely above a whisper.

"Feminine bastards!"

"We'll kill you, hii!"

"Cassie…" I tried to raise my voice. The sudden nausea made it hard to focus on anything.

"You may have helped her, but you can just go now!"

"Like hell we will!

"Cassie!" my voice cut harshly through their argument, turning all eyes onto my pale face.

"Toko?" I heard the question in her voice. Then the horror. "Toko!"

But it was too late; my vision faded quickly as the ground rushed up to meet me.

The last thing I felt was a warm pair of arms wrapping around me before I passed out.

* * *

I seem to have a love for cliffhangers, don't I? Don't forget to review! Until next update!


	12. Awakening

Well, here we are; chapter twelve. And I can't tell you how hard it was for me to write it. I had no idea how to continue from last chapter, and I had to think for a whole week on what to do next. Sorry for the cliffhanger last chapter!

I don't have much more to say, I guess. I desperately need sleep now.

**Disclaimer: **No D.gray-man ownage, as usual.

* * *

"_Why the hell didn't she tell us about this?"_

"_Well, it doesn't sound like she had a lot of time to inform you of something like this. I mean, it's only been a few hours!"_

"_Motoko…"_

"_Oh, quit your whining!"_

The voices, though quiet, were making her already pounding headache ten times worse. And the nausea hadn't quite worn off yet.

"_When will she wake up?"_

"_Hell if I know."_

"_Well you should!"_

Aw, shut them up already…

Wait…

Her eyes opened a bit, just enough to let in the light of day and have to close them again. Too bright. She was laying on something comfortable. Not the couch, nor her bed… she couldn't quite name it...

Why was she there again?

"Shit!" Toko exclaimed, finally realizing what had happened. She rose from her laying position a little too quickly, making her head spin. Her mouth felt dry, and she still felt sick.

She was instantly bombarded by the voices.

"Toko, are you okay?" Cassie's question was such a typical one. No time to answer, since another one followed right after.

"Bitch, why didn't you tell us?"

"Dero was scared, hii!"

"Would you all just shut up for a minute?" Toko said, her voice hoarse. It hurt to talk. Cassie seemed to understand this, as she handed her a glass of water that Toko gratefully drank.

She sighed as she finished, and finally took a chance to look around. She'd been laid on the couch. But it took her a moment to realize that it was _not_ the couch that her head had rested on.

It was Jasdero's lap.

She instantly freaked out.

"What the hell?!" she yelled, though her hoarse voice made it more speaking volume. She backed away from the blond teen; his concerned face was inches away from hers, and she could already feel the blush working its way up to her face. How strange.

"What's wrong?" Jasdero asked, confused. As soon as she had woken up, she was freaking out, then she'd calmed down, only to freak out again. Couldn't she make up her mind?

"What the hell did you do with me?" she asked, her eyes wide. Everything seemed confusing. But she remembered now what had happened.

Shit.

"I told you she wouldn't like it…" Cassie muttered. The older girl shoved Jasdero out of the way, much to his annoyance, and sat down next to Toko.

"How do you feel?" she asked.

Toko closed her eyes. "Better. Still have a headache, though."

"How long has it been since the last attack?"

Toko squirmed, her eyes flickering to the twins, Jasdero now standing beside his silent brother.

"A few months."

Cassie's eyes narrowed slightly. "What about last night?"

"What about it?"

"Don't play dumb. Was that an attack, or not?"

"Look, Cassie…"

"I already told them, so you don't have to avoid it."

Toko grimaced. "You told them? Why?"

Cassie sighed. "Well, they saw it. It's kind of hard not to recognize a seizure."

"Cassie-"

"So was it, or not?" Her voice was more demanding now.

"Look, I don't know! All I know is that I passed out, okay? Ask those two! They saw it!" Toko said, her voice soft. She didn't want to look at them. Didn't want to face them.

Cassie sighed. "I don't think you had one last night… But it probably had to do with the one today."

Jasdero was fidgeting. "Motoko?"

Toko swallowed. Her throat felt dry again."What?"

"Why didn't you tell us?"

"Why should I?" she muttered, refusing to meet the boy's gaze.

"Why is it so secret?" Debitto spoke now. He didn't sound concerned like Jasdero did; he sounded angry, annoyed.

"I didn't-"

"Why would you hide something like this from us? That you have epilepsy?" Debitto's voice rose with his anger.

Toko's hands clenched into fists. She felt her own anger rising.

"Is it so horrible that we know-"

"Is it so wrong that I didn't want you to know that I have seizures?" she exclaimed, standing up shakily.

"Is it so wrong for us to be worried about you?" Debitto yelled, taking a step closer and grabbing her by her shoulders, forcing her to look at him.

"Think about how much worse it is if we don't know what's wrong with you! That was scary! What if blondie bitch hadn't been here?" he continued, his grip on her shoulders tight. She couldn't pull away. Could only stare at him with a defeated look while Cassie complained in the background.

"I'm not a bitch!"

"Shut up, bitch!" Debitto momentarily turned away from Toko, sticking his tongue out at the older girl, who only huffed in annoyance. His grip loosened on Toko, and she quickly backed away from his, her gaze anywhere but him or his brother.

Because he was right. She'd been lucky that Cassie had been there.

"I'm sorry…"

"What?" Debitto turned back to her.

"I'm sorry, okay?"

He actually looked shocked for a second, but nodded slowly.

"There aren't any… _other_secrets you're avoiding telling us, are there?" he asked. Toko almost smiled, and shook her head.

"No. But while we're talking about secrets, what about you two? Do _you_ have anything you should tell me?" she asked slowly.

Both twins seemed to freeze for a second; a sure sign that they _did_ have a secret. But it seemed like they weren't going to tell it.

"No." Debitto answered. "Why would we?"

Toko just shook her head. "Ah, no, never mind then…"

Someone cleared their throat. I turned to Cassie, who was looking annoyed at being ignored.

"Well, Toko, I'm going to call work and tell them you're not coming in." she said.

"Aww, Cassie…"

"No arguing. I'm not letting you leave this place until I'm sure you're not gonna have another attack."

"What?!" Toko exclaimed. "What do you expect me to do for the rest of the day? It's probably not even three o'clock yet!"

"I don't care. But _you're_ not leaving this house and those two assholes _are_."

The twins were the ones upset now.

"What did we do to deserve this?"

"Yeah, we're still worried, hii! Why are you making us leave?"

"Shut it! Don't you idiots have anywhere else you're supposed to be?" Cassie growled.

The two boys seemed to stop to think for a moment, then both shook their heads simultaneously.

"Nope."

"Nada, hii!"

Toko sighed. After everything, she just felt exhausted now. "Oh, by the way, Cassie, thanks for catching me. Thanks to you, I didn't end up with an extra injury."

Cassie blinked. "Oh, but I'm not the one who caught you." She said after a moment's hesitation.

"… Then who did?"

Cassie jerked her thumb back. "Voodoo blondie."

Jasdero seemed offended by his new nickname. "Don't call me that!"

Toko blinked. "Jasdero… caught me?"

The blond boy nodded, smiling brightly. Debitto rolled his eyes.

Cassie snorted. "Yeah, then he refused to let go of you, even after the seizure stopped." She said. Something along the lines of 'stupid brat' were muttered under her breath.

"But now, they have to leave! You look exhausted. If they're lucky, they'll get to see you tomorrow or something. That is, if I decide to forgive them for what they did the other day."

Debitto opened his mouth to protest, but Jasdero spoke before him, something very unusual.

"Okay, Jasdebi will leave…"

Debitto stared, mouth still open, at his brother.

"But Motoko has to promise that she'll let us see her later, okay?"

Toko blinked, then nodded. The words seemed to come so natural.

"Yeah, of course. I'll see you tomorrow then."

Jasdero smiled, and turned around towards the door, grabbing his brother's arm as he did so. Debitto glanced once more back at Toko before allowing his brother to tug him out the door.

"See ya."

"Yeah, bye."

The door closed behind them.

* * *

Cassie giggled as Toko finally crawled into her own bed, now changed into clean clothes. Toko gave her the best annoyed look she could come up with. But it was pretty hard when she was so tired.

"What?"

"You like them, don't you?"

Toko froze, halfway through pulling up the covers, her eyes wide.

"What?" She sounded like a broken record.

"I guess I can see why. They may be idiots, but the black haired one is hot, and the blond one seems pretty nice. If you ignore how crazy he is. And that annoying laughing of his." Cassie sounded thoughtful.

Toko snorted. "Stop jumping to stupid conclusions." she muttered.

Cassie only grinned. "Well, if you don't want them, I'd be happy to take one of them-"

"Are you crazy?" Toko's voice rose a bit.

Cassie stopped, still grinning. "Just admit it. You like them."

"I do not." Toko replied stubbornly. Because it was true. As least, she thought it was. How was she supposed to know? She'd never cared for the opposite sex before; and she wasn't going to start now.

Did she even know what it was like, to love someone?

She almost laughed at herself for such a stupid idea. She was just happy, thrilled even, that her old friends had turned up alive, though she wouldn't admit it. There were no other feelings other than that.

Right?

Cassie sighed, defeated. "Fine, if you don't admit it… I'll leave you then. If you don't rest, I'll find some way to force you."

"What, like beat me?" Toko asked with a laugh. Cassie smiled.

"You know, you seem to be in a pretty good mood. Last night you seemed really out of it, but today…" she trailed off. Toko swallowed.

"Is it those two?" she asked, finally.

Toko shrugged, dismissing the subject as she pulled the covers over her head. So tired… Cassie understood.

"I'll stay here until later tonight." She said. Toko sighed.

"Why are you always so good to me, Cassie?"

Cassie smiled. "Because I'm your friend. And who else is gonna look after you? Those morons? I think not."

Toko laughed softly with her, though sleep was quickly coming up on her.

"See you later, Cas. And keep those two out of my room…"

"Haha… I will…"

And with that, the world of light quickly fades to dark as sleep claimed the exhausted girl.

* * *

There you have it! Now I need to go to bed.

Hope I explained the problem well enough. And in case you don't know:

**Epilepsy-** A disorder of the nervous system, characterized either by mild, episodic loss of attention or sleepinessor by severe convulsions with loss of consciousness. Any of various neurological disorders characterized by sudden recurring attacks of motor, sensory, or psychic malfunction with or convulsive seizures.


	13. Elsewhere

And finally, a chapter that I'm sure many people were looking forward to; one without any OCs. Yay! Anyway, this was really fun to write. So fun in fact, that I made it longer than I usually do.

I still hope I'm keeping the twins in character. Same with everyone else. So, enjoy the chapter!

**Disclaimer**: No ownage, as usual.

* * *

It didn't take long to get back to the Noah mansion.

They did so silently, never speaking a word to each other. Such a rare thing. But they were both lost in their own thoughts.

They had to be careful thought; they were supposed to be on a mission, and if they were caught back here, they would be in trouble. The tip toed through the living room, narrowly avoiding detection by Lulubell, and headed to the room that they shared. They were almost there…

"Oi, what are you two doing back here?"

Damn.

Debitto instantly rounded on the surprised man. "None of your business, Tyki! Leave us alone!"

Jasdero quickly followed up. "Yeah! Jasdebi are only here to get some things, so leave us alone, hii!"

Tyki sighed. "Meaning, you're asking me to not tell the Earl?"

Both twins nodded, earning another sigh from Tyki.

"Okay… what happened?"

"Nothing!"

"Nothing we'd tell you, hii!"

"Tell me." Tyki folded his arms, looking stern.

"It doesn't matter! We're only here to get some things. And I need to change my clothes." Debitto muttered.

"Why? What happened to you?"

"Nothing!"

"Debi got pushed in a lake, hii!"

"Don't tell him!"

"Ah, so she dumped you?"

Jasdero giggled, but Debitto stood there looking stupid for a minute.

"Dumped me?"

"She's your girlfriend, right?" Tyki asked, holding in his laughter. "I'm guessing that her pushing you in the lake is her way of dumping you."

"She's not my girlfriend!" the boy screamed. Which was a bad idea, he quickly realized.

"Who has a girlfriend?" a child's voice asked, and the three turned around to see Rhode poking her little head out of her bedroom. She had a brush in one hand, and a bloodstained, green dress slung over the other. She had probably been in her room 'playing' with an akuma.

Tyki and Jasdero both pointed to Debitto, who was still slightly confused, which only made him more annoyed.

"Traitor!" he yelled to his twin, who responded by finally letting out the wild laughter that he'd been holding in.

But Rhode had already let out a squeal of delight.

"Debitto has a girlfriend? Is she pretty? Can I meet her? Oh, how about I dress her up? That would be so fun! What's she like?" the little girl clung to Tyki's arm, much to the man's annoyance, and rattled off her questions.

Debitto growled. "She's not my girlfriend."

"What? She's not?" Rhode asked, looking disappointed.

"Nope."

"Awww…"

" She's Jasdero's."

"Hii?!"

Jasdero's bewildered expression had everyone laughing now, which then attracted the attention of the rest of the household, the one thing that the twins had been trying to avoid in the first place.

"What's going on in here?" Lulubell asked as she neared, her eyes hidden behind her sunglasses just as well as her expressions were hidden from the world.

"Jasdero has a girlfriend!" Rhode squealed.

"N-no I don't!"

Lulubell ignored him. "Oh? That's strange. I didn't know anyone would ever want to date either of the twins."

"Hey! Stupid cat!"

"That's mean, hii!" Jasdero sniffled. "And it's not true! Motoko is not Dero's girlfriend!"

"Ah, so her name is Motoko?" Rhode asked.

"Yeah, but she actually gets angry when you call her that. Apparently, now she'd rather be called Toko." Debitto said, grinning and thinking back to how she'd snapped at him.

"Ohh, really? Then if she ever comes over, I'll make sure to call her Motoko!" Rhode said happily.

Jasdero frowned. "She doesn't like being called Motoko?"

Debitto nodded, realizing that Dero hadn't been there when Toko had explained this to him. Which meant he didn't know about her mother either. He'd have to fill him in later.

"Why have you been hanging around with a human?" Lulubell asked, looking bored.

Debitto just stuck his tongue out at her. "None of your business. Now can you get out of our way so we can get our stuff so we can get back?"

The older Noah only shrugged, and walked away.

Rhode pouted. "Aww, but I wanna hear more about Debitto's girlfriend!"

"Not mine, Dero's."

"Nuu, she's not Dero's, hii!"

"She slept on _your_ lap."

Tyki blinked. "She slept on your lap? Wow… yup, she's your girlfriend alright."

"Hii?! That's not true!"

"Are you kidding? You wouldn't let us lay her anywhere else."

"Can we just go now?" Jasdero asked, frustrated.

"Look, he's blushing!" Rhode squealed.

"I am not!"

"Haha… come on, Dero, let's go. It's getting late, and we have to sneak back in after that bitch leaves." Debitto said, grinning.

"Oh well, I'm going to get back to playing with my dolls then!" Rhode said, finally letting go of Tyki as she returned to her room. "Invite her over sometime! I want to put her in pretty dresses and play with her until she drops!"

Debitto rolled his eyes, and opened the door to their room. "Right, right…"

"Jasdebi wouldn't let you do that, hii!" Jasdero said, frowning. He didn't like the idea.

But Rhode only gave them a sadistic grin, and closed her door, leaving Jasdebi alone with Tyki.

There was an awkward silence for a moment.

"Yeah… we're going now." Debitto said, breaking the silence.

"Haven't I told you already not to get too-"

"Not to get too attached? Yeah, we know already. Stop sounding like a broken record." Debitto said, entering their room. He paused to kick aside a dead akuma maid that must have tried to clean the place, and met its doom there.

"Aw damn, not another one…" they were such a pain to clean up.

Tyki's eyes widened. He didn't bother going near the twins very often, so he hadn't seen their room in a while.

It was a disaster zone.

"When's the last time you cleaned this place?" he asked, shocked by what he was seeing. More clothes than he was sure the two boys had ever worn were thrown and piled all over the room. Who knew what lay under those many piles of clothes, but Tyki now suspected that this might be where some of the missing akuma had ended up. A foul smell lingered in the air, and he was having a hard time believing that the two actually _slept_ in this place.

"Eh? Cleaned it? I don't think we've ever done that." Jasdero answered, running over and flinging himself on his bed, which was right next to Debitto's.

They had had a bunk bed at one point, but with the two always fighting over who slept on top, Debitto usually winning, they had eventually accidentally blasted it apart. The incident had resulted in two battered twins, many bewildered Noah standing outside the door, a frightened chicken, and one room aflame. Not to mention one very unhappy Earl.

Tyki rolled his eyes, trying to forget the incident. "I suppose you keep Jasdebi's Hate locked away in the closet then?" he asked, referring to the disgusting monster that the two could conjure up in battle.

Jasdero blinked. "How did you know?"

Debitto grinned. "Want us to show you the closet?"

Tyki shook his head quickly. "No, no, I'm very good not scarring my mind with that image. Thanks for the offer." He said, and finally started paying attention to what the two were doing.

Both had grabbed a backpack of some sort and were stuffing clothes and other items into them. As soon as Debitto had filled his backpack, he had grabbed a new shirt and pants, both very similar to what he was already wearing, and began to strip.

Tyki reacted in an expected fashion; he freaked out.

"What are you doing?!"

"Huh?" Debitto looked up, his shirt already off, and stared blankly at the older man. "AH! What are you still doing here, you pervert? Can't you see I'm changing?!" he yelled, throwing his old, slightly damp shirt at him.

"You're the one who started stripping in front of me!"

"You came in our room uninvited!"

"You failed to notice that I was in here!"

"Debi, we can't help that Tyki is a pervert, hii."

"I-I'm not a pervert!" Tyki stuttered, outraged.

"Get out, perv!" Debitto yelled. "I'm not taking my pants off in front of you!"

"Because Jasdebi don't wear underpants, hihi!"

"Dero!"

"Trust me, it's nothing I want to see. But I wonder if Toko does…"

"Out!"

Tyki left with a grin, always happy to get the last laugh. Of course, he wouldn't help but add one last comment…

"Have fun stripping for Jasdero."

"TYKI!"

But the older man was already gone, his roars of laughter quickly fading as he closed the door behind him and walked down the hall, leaving Debitto fuming and half naked.

"That man…"

"Just get dressed, hii. Dero wants to hurry and get back." Jasdero said, swinging his now stuffed-with-who-knows-what backpack over his shoulder.

Debitto growled softly, but nodded, finishing the job of removing his pants. He was starting to get on the newer, dry but not exactly clean pair when Jasdero's thinking aloud interrupted him.

"I wonder if Toko _would_ like it…"

Debitto paused, halfway through pulling his pants up, looking at his brother with a horrified expression.

"_What_?!"

"Ah, nothing, hii."

"Dero, _you're_ the pervert, not Tyki!"

"Dero was just thinking!"

"Well stop thinking!"

"Is that even possible?"

"I don't know, but just do it." Debitto growled, pulling up his pants and securing them on with a belt. These ones were more like Jasdero's in the way that they actually had both pant legs.

"Alright, let's go." he announced, grabbing his own backpack.

"Um, wait a second, hii."

"What?"

"Do you think, maybe we should wait a bit? I mean… it hasn't been very long. Cassie is probably still there, hii." Jasdero said, sitting down on his bed.

Debitto sighed. "Yeah, you're right. We should go in later… after Toko is asleep and Cassie is gone."

"But we have to search for the innocence once everyone is asleep, hii."

Debitto groaned. He'd forgotten. "Aw man… that means no sleep for us. Great."

"Or…"

"What're you thinking, Jas?"

"Oh, sorry, Debi told me not to think anymore."

"Dero!"

Jasdero grinned, stretching the stitches across his mouth. "Or, Jasdebi could just… search for an hour to say we did it. Then go back and sleep."

Debitto nodded, liking the idea. "But even then, we're bound to find it soon. Within a few days, maybe. If we want to stretch this week out, we gotta do it really slow."

"Then why don't we…"

"What?"

"Sorry, Dero was thinking again, hii."

"Okay, that's getting kind of old."

"Instead of splitting up, which would go faster, we could combine."

There was a pause.

"Say, when did you get so smart, Dero?"

Jasdero grinned. "Dero has always been this smart. Maybe Debi never noticed."

"That's a good idea. As long as the Earl doesn't find out we're slacking off." Debitto said, thoughtful.

"And as long as Motoko doesn't see us, hii."

"Yeah… that would be a problem."

"Hey, do you really think she believes it was a dream?" Jasdero asked, laying back on his bed, backpack now disposed on the floor. It would be a miracle if he ever found it again.

His brother shrugged, taking a seat at the end of his brother's bed. "Honestly, no. But as long as she plays along with it, and we don't give her any more reason to suspect it, we should be fine."

Jasdero sighed, closing his eyes. "Dero feels bad, lying to her…"

"But if she knew the truth, it's like Tyki said. She'd hate us."

"I don't want her to hate us…" Jasdero mumbled.

"I… I don't either." Debitto admitted, lying down on his stomach next to his brother.

"She's still nice, like she was back then…"

"She's a bit more messed up though." Debitto said, thinking back again to his conversation with her by the lake.

"How, hii?"

"I'll tell you while we wait to go back. I got to talk with her a bit while you were showering…"

"Before or after she pushed you in?"

"After."

There was another silence, until Jasdero spoke quietly.

"Her hair is soft…"

Debitto laughed. "You and your love for hair. Don't worry. Everything will be fine. We won't give her any reason to hate us."

Jasdero smiled now, eyes still closed. "Dero wants… to keep going back there. Even after this mission is over."

Debitto sighed quietly. "Yeah. Maybe we will."

"And we can go back and do all the things we used to."

Debitto laughed. "And see her annoyed expression every time we piss her off."

"And Dero will do her hair again."

"Definitely."

And with that, as the time went by and the sun slowly made its trek across the sky, Debitto filled in what had happened between him and Toko, and when this was finished, talked quietly with his brother until it was time to leave, never knowing that the happy dream the two had created would never come true.

* * *

Next chapter, I'm gonna give you a special, two for one deal!

Translation: I'm giving you a taste of combined Jasdebi. So look forward to that.

I'm sure I had Debitto fangirls jumping out of their seats at the thought of naked Debitto. You're welcome for that. And as usual, I hope you enjoyed this and I still love it when you review!


	14. Evil Angel

For once, I didn't have any writer's block, so I took advantage and wrote another chapter. I think it's a bit shorter than the others, but I almost feel like it's more of a filler chapter. Oh well. I'm sure people will be happy for it anyway.

**Disclaimer**: No ownage.

* * *

A lone man walked through the path through the woods, watching his step in the darkness. He'd been out drinking too long, and his wife was sure to scold him. Plus, he'd have a huge hangover in the morning. But none of that seemed to matter to him at the moment. He was concentrating on getting home in one piece.

The woods could be dangerous, and there had been talk about outsiders or something coming to town. Rumor was that they had attacked a girl. He didn't quite know. It wasn't his business to know of all of the gossip in town. But just to be safe…

Something startled him from his thoughts; and duel pair of gunshots, suddenly cracking the night silence like a whip. The man stopped, eyes wide, as he franticly looked around. They had been close, close enough to hurt his eats. He saw nothing.

But he heard something.

"Aw man, there was an old guy here." Two voices spoke at the same time from right behind him. He let out a yell, and turned around.

Though he had heard two voices, there was only one figure in front of him. He almost mistook it for a woman, though soon realized that it was a male. The grey-skinned man smiled wickedly.

"What are you staring at, pops? Oh well, look like we have to get rid of him." Again, two voices for the one figure.

"W-what are you-"

Blood. Pain. Death.

Jasdebi smiled, tossing the bloodied, run through body into the bushes and continuing on his way. Already, it had been a fun night.

* * *

_I wasn't sure what had awakened me, but it was probably the voices._

_I slipped gently out of sleep, listening to the voices in the other room. In my weariness, I couldn't name then, though I suspected them to be Jasdero and Debitto. But I was too tired to even care. Let them come. As long as they didn't abuse their stay._

_I didn't notice the perfect way that the voices spoke, as I could not make out what they were saying from the other room. Perhaps, had I been fully awake, I would have noticed the way they spoke at exactly the same time._

_I wanted to go back to sleep, and was about to, when I heard my door open quietly. The voices had stopped. Were they here to torment me? Perhaps if I pretended I was asleep… yes, that was what I would do. Quickly, I closed my eyes and let my breathing return to the deep breaths of a sleeper._

_But no hand reached out to shake me, no loud, boasting voice jolted me. There was only the soft tapping of boots on the wood, making their way over to where the window was. I lay there for a moment, unsure of what to do, and finally risked opening my eyes a tiny bit._

_It wasn't Jasdero or Debitto._

_In the darkness of the room, I was surprised that I could pick out suck a small, insignificant detail, as the color of the figure's eyes. The light from the window was just right, illuminating the golden eye, framed by a wall of black and blond hair. There was a small, almost unnoticeable intake of breath from me, which I then recognized to be my version of a sleepy gasp. The small part of my mind that was awake was telling me that this was a dream, but I paid it no attention._

_Would this be the kind of beauty one would imagine an angel to have?_

_The man did not realize that I was awake; he was staring out the window, his single golden eye holding a soft expression. Even if he looked over at me in the darkness, he probably would not have noticed my half open, sleepy eyes._

_His attention eventually did turn to me, and I quickly snapped my inferior blue eyes shut. I waited, wondering if he had noticed, fighting the weariness that tried to force sleep upon me. I was sure that my heart was beating faster than normal._

_And then I felt it; something brush against my cheek. It took a moment to recognize it as hair. I could feel it, the warmth of his breath on my cheek, my resting eyes, my lips. My heart raced; surely he would hear it? Never had I felt so awake, yet so weary. Sleep threatened to claim me any second._

_And then, so unexpected, something warm pressed ever so softly, against my cheek. I'm sure my heart stopped at that moment. A kiss. So short and gentle that I almost could have missed it. I so wanted to open my unworthy eyes and stare at the face of that God sent angel._

_But he pulled back all too quickly, the fragile movement of time returning along with my heartbeat. I kept my breath slow, feeling the rising and lowering of my chest that seemed ready to burst now. I heard again, the quiet sound of boots walking across the floor, and my heart cried out painfully as I realized that he was leaving. I wanted to call out, fight against the ending dream that I wanted to go on forever._

_The silence was broken by those voices, both familiar and unfamiliar._

_"Sleep well, Motoko."_

_The door closed, and sleep claimed me again, ushering me into the next dream._

* * *

"Dammit, dammit, I know there's Innocence in this place… I can sense it, but I just can't tell where it's coming from… dammit…" Jasdebi whispered as he walked through the silent town. Yes, he could feel it. But he couldn't pinpoint its location.

Something caught his attention, and he cussed quietly.

"You! Get away from there. Haven't I said that we aren't going to draw attention to ourselves?" he spoke to an akuma in the shape of a young girl, who was standing on her toes to see inside a window of one of the houses. The akuma lowered her head, and stepped away.

"Where did these guys come from anyway? I thought we killed the ones assigned to this mission…"

"We're here on orders of the Earl to assist in the mission." Another akuma spoke, this one a young man.

"Yeah, I know. You already said that earlier." Jasdebi snapped. These things were getting on his nerves.

"Wouldn't it be easier to just kill everyone, then search for the Innocence?" a third one spoke, this one an adult male, who looked bored.

Jasdebi turned to him with a menacing glare.

"I mean, if it's in a human's house, we can't search for it like this. Now, if we just destroyed the whole place, killed all of the insects, it would-"

A piece of Jasdebi's hair shot out, piercing the akuma. It let out a surprised and pained yell, and another piece of hair wrapped around its mouth, silencing it. Jasdebi pulled it towards him, fuming.

"If we killed everyone, that would attract exorcists in the area, which we don't want to do. You're not the one giving orders; I am. So why don't you just shut your mouth and do as I say?" he hissed. The akuma shuddered, and bowed its head in submission, and the hair loosened, freeing him.

"If any of you draw attention to yourselves by killing any humans, I'll do so much worse than kill you. You'll wish your pathetic souls had never been created." he finished, turning his back to the machines.

The one he had stabbed stood up shakily.

"We understand, Noah-sama." He said, and bowed his head. The other two mimicked him in this action, making Jasdebi snort in amusement. Stupid pieces of junk. So submissive.

"Right. Now that we're all clear, get out of my sight."

Again, they nodded, and quickly disappeared, leaving the Noah by himself. Of course, he was never really alone…

As soon as he was sure that they were gone, he let out a huge yawn. It was time he got back.

He'd just started on his way back to Toko's house when he heard a shrill scream. He swore loudly, and turned around, looking for where the sound had come from. Not far away, it came again, and faster than any human, he ran to see what was happening.

He rounded the corner of a building to see three figures, one of them the young female akuma. The other two were young humans, both standing opposite her. Jasdebi snarled, drawing nearer. Hadn't he just gotten done telling them to not draw attention?

Neither of the humans noticed him approaching. Jasdebi stopped, confused, as he realized that the scene was not as he thought it was.

The akuma was crying, tears running down her dirty face, and the two boys stood, each a foot taller than her, sneering down at her.

"Monster!" the first boy spoke, pointing to the black pentacle on the akuma's forehead.

The second boy laughed. "Gotta kill the monster, right?"

The akuma looked from one to the other. "P-please, leave me alone. If I hurt you, the Noah will find out and k-kill me!" she pleaded.

The boys gave each other a look, and just laughed.

"I heard stories about monsters like you from my dad. They're supposed to be really scary."

"But what's wrong with this one? It's not scary at all! Just a stupid, pathetic monster girl!"

"Please! I don't want him to kill me!" she cried.

"Kill the monster, kill the monster, kill-"

Their chant was cut off Jasdebi's hair tightened around them, cutting off their oxygen. Their eyes widened as they finally noticed the furious Noah. But it was too late.

The bled nicely, Jasdebi thought idly as he tossed their punctured, wound covered bodies aside when he was done with them. He hadn't been able to enjoy their screams though. That would draw too much unwanted attention. But he was satisfied with the outcome. He kicked one of the boys' lifeless heads, the eyes still staring blankly up at him.

"Noah-sama…" a voice pulled him out of his thoughts. He turned to stare at the akuma, and realized what she must think about this.

"I didn't do it for you." he said, toying with the boy's head under his foot. "I did it because I hate any human who calls anything but themselves a monster." He growled slightly. Monster. Just that word made him angry, pissed beyond reason. He couldn't help but kill the filthy creatures.

The girl swallowed, and nodded.

Jasdebi was done now, and he kicked the boy one last time before turning around and heading away from the scene of blood.

"Clean this up. Make sure no traces of blood are found. Humans aren't all stupid; they'll realize something if they know these _monsters_ were murdered. Make it look like they just disappeared. Got it?"

He turned around to see the akuma nodding, her short hair flopping around her face as she did so.

"Good. Now get to work."

He left the akuma staring at the mess he had made.

* * *

A thick fog hung over the grass and the water of the lake, floating around without any real form.

Jasdebi emerged, like a ghost, from the fog, and knelt down at the water's edge. His hands were covered in blood, which he began to wash off, turning the water a light pink in the moonlight. Strange, how cloudy it had been in the day, now not a single cloud hung in the night sky.

His clothes were also spotted with the thick, life giving substance, but he didn't worry about it, and instead began washing the blood from the ends of his hair where he had pierced the humans. Though he didn't like washing his hair in the dirty lake, it was the only option for now.

Even after he had finished washing out his hair, he continued to run his fingers through it absentmindedly. He had been so tired earlier, but now he didn't want to go back inside the house. He swallowed nervously, getting back into a standing position.

The house had been swallowed up by the fog, but he knew it was there. He took a step forward.

_She would never call us a monster… We're not monsters…_

"We won't do anything to make you hate us…"

* * *

There you go! Chapter fourteen. I don't have much to comment on it. Heh...


	15. Tennis Trouble

Extra long chapter, yaaay! Yeah, I'm tired. I need rest now. I've been having trouble sleeping lately, but hopefully tonight will be different.

Two chapters in one week really tires me out. But I'll at least try to do it more often.

And I am angry that Hoshino is taking another break from the chapters. I mean, the anime is going to catch up to the manga, and then what? Fillers. Horrible, horrible fillers... -shudders-

**Disclaimer:** I don't own D.gray-man... -sigh-

* * *

Something hit Debitto on the head.

"Hey. Get up."

Debitto groaned, trying and failing to roll over. God, he was tired… Who was bothering him?

"Get up, moron."

"Five more minutes, Tyki…" he mumbled.

Another whack on the head. This one harder. Debitto opened one eye, annoyed now, to yell at Tyki…

And realized that it wasn't Tyki.

Toko stood above him, fully dressed in jeans, a black hoodie, and a black and white striped shirt, looking just as annoyed as he was.

"_What_ are you doing?" she hissed out.

Debitto blinked, more awake now, though still confused as to why she was so upset.

"What?" he asked, looking up at her. He tried to sit up, and failed… Something heavy was lying on top of him…

Jasdero.

Oh…

"This isn't what it looks like…" he said slowly, realizing how strange it must look to the girl.

When they had come back the night before, they had been too tired to really care where they slept; they'd just lain down on the couch and split back into the twins. Jasdero lay, sleeping, on top of Debitto, who now staring up at Toko through his brother's blond hair. He nudged the sleeping blond.

"Jas, wake up!"

Jasdero mumbled, but didn't open his eyes. Debitto poked his face, still receiving no reaction. He looked up at Toko with a pleading look.

Toko just rolled her eyes. "Your brother. You take care of it."

Debitto glared at her. "Fine." he said, and pushed against Jasdero's chest, rolling the boy off of him and onto the floor.

Jasdero hit the ground with a 'thud' and yelped, instantly jolted out of his sleep.

"W-what's going on, hii?" he asked, eyes wide, and he looked around franticly. Debitto grinned.

"Nice of you to finally join us, Dero."

Jasdero looked up with a confused look, then noticed Toko. "Ah, good morning, hii."

Toko rolled her eyes again. "I'm not even going to ask. See you guys later…" she said, grabbing a bag and heading to the door.

"Woah, wait, where are you going?" Debitto asked, jumping off of the couch and following the girl, while Jasdero pushed himself off of the floor and did the same.

Toko turned around, giving him a funny look. "School. Duh."

"… School?"

"Yeah. That's where I go during the week. Don't you?"

"Uh… not really…"

"Toko doesn't have to leave, does she?" Jasdero asked, latching onto her arm. She quickly shook him off with an almost sympathetic look.

"Really, I'd love to not go, but I can't."

"Why? There's no one here making you go!" Jasdero whined.

Her response was quick. "Cassie."

"Oh…"

"Just… stay here. You guys can, I don't know, entertain yourselves or something. I don't care."

"But that's not fun, hii…"

Toko ignored him. "And I swear, if you guys trash my house, or look through my room again, I'll seriously kill you."

Debitto grinned. Unknown to the girl, he already had a plan forming in his mind.

"Fine. We'll just wait here. You and your stupid school…"

Toko glared at him. "See you guys in a few hours."

The door shut behind her, and Debitto's full, evil grin finally made its way onto his face.

"Are you ready for school, Dero?"

* * *

"Ugh, dammit!" Toko screamed as she swung the tennis racket, epically missing the ball entirely. The yellow ball flew past her and bounced off of the fence behind her.

Her partner gave her a sad look. "You fail at this."

"Ugh, I know… don't remind me…" Toko hiss out, running over to retrieve the ball. She stared at it with hatred as the picked it up. It was damn hot, and she really regretted wearing black. She had already discarded her hoodie, but she was still covered in sweat.

"Ugh… why? Yesterday, it was _raining_. What's up with today? Where did this sun come from?" she asked, throwing the ball up in the air. She hit it, sending it flying to the left, nowhere near the boy she'd been partnered with for the stupid sport. The boy didn't even attempt to go after it, but slowly began the long walk to retrieve the potentially dangerous ball.

"Who knows… but it's damn annoying." he answered. Other people gave him sympathetic looks at being partnered with the sports impaired girl.

"This is terrible… and I'm so sorry… I know I suck at this…"

"No, it's okay…" he lied, returning to their own court. He served the ball again, sending it whizzing at Toko, who squealed and swatted at it. It bounced off of her racket, and barely made it over the net.

"See, that wasn't so bad! You're getting better!"

"No I'm not… that was terrible..."

"Haha! You're right, I've never seen anyone worse at tennis than you!" a voice said from behind her.

She groaned.

"What are you doing here?!" Toko yelled, turning around to snarl at the twins.

The stood there, grinning, with their tight pants and black attire, as if the sun and the heat didn't exist.

"We were bored and we couldn't wait any longer, hii!"

"And you said we could entertain ourselves."

"That didn't mean coming to school! It's only been a couple of hours! You can be bored for a few more!" she hissed. Her partner was giving her and the two boys a funny look.

"Who are they?" he asked.

Jasdebi instantly rounded on him, Debitto striding over to the net that separated them.

"None of your business! I think _we_ should be asking who _you_ are!"

Toko groaned. "Please go away."

Debitto turned his attention from the bewildered classmate to Toko. "No. We're not going anywhere."

"Did you forget my death threat?"

"Nope. But if I remember correctly, you never said anything against us coming to school."

"Well I am now!"

"Hii, is Toko hot?" Jasdero asked, worried. He ran up to her and grabbed her hair in his hands, pulling out a mysterious hair tie from nowhere, and using it to pull Toko's hair back. He smiled. "There!"

"Jasdero…"

"What, hii?" The look he gave her was pleading. Toko stared at him, frowning.

"You couldn't say no to that face, would you?" Debitto asked, grinning. Toko turned to glare at him.

"You planned this all out."

"Well, of course."

"I hate you…"

"So, are you going to let us teach you tennis, or not?"

Toko stared at him. "You're going to _teach_ me?"

"Well, after seeing how horrible you are, I don't think we have much of a choice. If we leave you here, you'll probably kill someone." Debitto said with a smirk.

Toko snorted. "You won't be able to. I suck at every sport."

"That can't be true!" Jasdero said happily, tying his own hair back. Perhaps they _did_ feel the heat…

Toko turned to her partner, who was still giving them confused looks. "Tell them how much I suck."

"Ah, well, you don't…"

"Don't lie."

"Yeah, she sucks."

"Get out of here!" Debitto yelled, now earning a startled look. "We don't need you here. You're dismissed. Good bye."

Jasdero giggled as the boy walked away. They were beginning to attract attention now, though mostly from female students. Debitto, noticing this, grinned, and slowly removed his jacket, and tossed it to the side, earning an eye roll from Toko.

"So, you ready to learn?" he asked.

"If by learn, you mean show you how much I suck, then yes."

"Don't be so negative. Just get ready, I'm gonna serve to you." The boy said, walking to the other side of the net with the ball, while Jasdero remained with her.

She saw him toss up the ball in the air, to serve it overhand, but she never actually saw the ball. All she saw was a yellow blur that whizzed past her line of vision, cutting through the air. It smashed against the fence, rattling it and startling her.

"What the hell are you _doing_?!"

"Did I serve it too hard? Toss me it and I'll try again…"

"No! I'm not playing with _you_! You'll kill me!"

He frowned. "Just throw me the damn ball."

But she refused. She sat down in the ground, staring defiantly across the court at him, earning an annoyed look from him.

"Look! I was only testing it out! I won't do it so hard next time!"

"No! I don't want to learn how to do this! And certainly not from you! I just want to play like I was before you idiots came!"

"You mean you want to suck like you did earlier? We're trying to help you, stupid! Dero get me the ball!"

Jasdero nodded, obediently running over and picking up the ball. He tossed it lightly back to his brother, who deftly caught it, and returned to Toko. He offered her his hand.

"Dero will help you." he said kindly.

She looked at his hand for a moment, wondering exactly what to do, and then took it, allowing him to help her up. Jasdero beamed.

"Here, hold the racket like this…" he said, taking her hands and conforming them around the handle, his own hands placed on top of hers. She stared at them, and swallowed.

"Do I really have to do this?"

"Please?" God, how could she deny him? She nodded, and the blond boy smiled happily.

"Okay Debi! Softer!" he called to his brother. His hands were still wrapped around hers, holding them in place over the racket, and she looked up at him questioningly. He blinked, and let go, mumbling apologies.

Debitto bounced the ball a couple of times. "Okay, just keep your eyes on the ball, and swing at it. But you don't have to swing with all of your strength."

"You mean like you did earlier?"

"Yeah, like that. Don't do that. Just hit it lightly. You'll be surprised how far it will go."

"Whatever… I'm still not liking this…"

But she did as he said when he served it, slower this time, and actually managed to hit it, though it ended up flying to the side away from him. Still no aim.

"Yay! Toko did it!" Jasdero cheered, hugging her, to her slight discomfort. "See? We said you could do it, and you did, hii!"

Toko smiled. "Lucky shot. I'm sure to do horrible next time…"

But when Debitto retrieved the ball and served it a second time, again, she managed to hit it, and this time it landed nearer to the boy. This pattern continued, until she was actually aiming it towards him, and he was able to hit it back.

"See?" he asked, bouncing the ball against the ground and grinning, "You _can_ do it."

"Except, I'm worn out now, I can't play anymore…" Gym would be over soon anyway…

"Alright then. Dero and I will play."

Oh no… somehow, this had a very bad feeling to it…

Like the first time he had served to her, after Toko had stepped off to the side and Jasdero had taken her place, Debitto threw the ball into the air… and it became a blur.

A blur that Jasdero was able to send right back at him.

Toko watched, amazed. She couldn't even see the ball, but the twins had no problem with it. They easily returned it to each other, neither missing it once. Both swung with a huge amount of force, and Toko was sure that something was going to get broken…

And she was right.

Jasdero returned the yellow blur back to his brother, who in turn swung… but no ball whizzed back at the blond.

"What… the hell?" the black haired twin muttered, staring at his racket that now sported a tennis ball sized hole through the middle of it.

"Oops, hii."

From inside the school building, the bell rung.

"Shit!" Toko cursed, jumping up. She'd been so mesmerized by the twin's match that she hadn't realized that the rest of the class was already heading inside.

"I'm going to be late for-"

"What's going on here?" a menacing voice asked from behind her. Toko slowly turned to stare at her gym teacher, a rather large woman who looked as though she didn't allow the subject she taught to ever enter her own personal life.

"I, uh…"

"Stupid piece of junk!" Debitto yelled from across the net, tossing the now useless racket aside.

"Hey, that's school equipment! You can't treat it like… that…" she trailed off as she noticed the hole in the middle.

"What have you done to that racket?!"

Debitto looked up and glared at her, kicking the broken thing. "Done to it? It broke, I didn't do anything."

"You get over here, right now!"

"Make me, bitch!"

There was a shocked silence.

"Debi…" Jasdero said quietly.

But the gym teacher was already walking over to him. Although it was probably meant to be running for her, with her sluggish movement, even Toko would have been able to walk faster than her. As she neared the black haired teen, she towered over him, casting her over large shadow on him.

"You're going to the principal's office. There, you will explain what you have done, how you have disrespected a teacher, and how you have damaged school equipment."

To Toko's horror, Debitto grinned, and made a rude hand gesture, easily side stepping the woman.

"I'm not going anywhere. If you think you and your school rules can touch me, you're very wrong, bitch."

The woman was absolutely fuming. "What is your name, boy? Who are you? Because you're not one of my students."

Debitto turned around after he reached Jasdero and Toko, smirking. "Like I'm telling you, lady. I'm getting out of here."

"You'll do no such-"

Toko yelled as Debitto grabbed her by the arm and took off running, Jasdero following. She had no choice but to run with him, as she would trip and fall and get injured if she didn't.

"Let me go, you asshole! Bastard! Let _go_! Do you know what you've just done to me? _Let go_!"

"You're noisy for a girl. Just shut up, or I'll make Jasdero carry you." Debitto yelled, turning to her as he ran. Jasdero was laughing from beside them.

"Where are you taking me?!"

"Somewhere we used to go back then." he said, referring to the time before they went away. This quieted her a bit.

"You know I'm going to do so much worse than kill you, right?"

Both twins just laughed, and she was pulled along against her will.

* * *

Remember what I was talking about earlier, about Toko getting trapped in a cave with Debitto? Expect that coming up pretty soon. Yup. So, hope you enjoyed. Reviews are still nice!


	16. Whispers in the Dark

And here we are, at chapter sixteen! I'm really happy that I've been able to make it this far without getting bored of writing the story. And I'm really grateful to everyone who reviews and reads and stuff. So, here's just a special thanks to Tema, Kuro, Schmem, Al, Eternal-chan, and everyone else who reads and reviews!

I think I'll warn you now that I don't know when this story will end. What I've got planned out is going to take so long. But I guess that's a good thing. You readers won't be getting bored anytime soon. I hope.

So, enough of my rambling. Here's the chapter!

**Disclaimer: **No owning DGM for me.

* * *

The trio trudged through the thick, green underbrush. They didn't follow any sort of path through the mess; the two leading seemed to know exactly where they were going, while the third trailed behind them, every few minutes snagging her clothes on a tree branch, tripping over a rock, or simply falling over uneven ground. All of these earned a round of curses and a helping hand from Jasdero.

"I'm going to murder you two while you sleep…" Toko hissed, after having her foot fall into a rabbit hole. It damn hurt too. She'd probably twisted her ankle or something.

Jasdero gave her a sympathetic look, and grabbed her arm, pulling her up to her feet. "Sorry…" he muttered. "If it helps, Dero can carry you…"

Toko made a face. "No offence, but I think I'd rather fall in ten more rabbit holes." Which she nearly did, as she took a step backwards right back into the hole that she'd just been helped out of.

"Shit!" she yelled, falling on her butt. Jasdero sighed, and held out his hand, silently giving his offer again.

Toko growled. "Like hell I'm letting you carry me. Stop asking."

He helped her up again, and gave her an innocent look. "Dero didn't say anything…" he said, earning a snort from Toko.

"Oh, yeah, leave it up to me to find the way there." Debitto yelled back at them from further ahead, clearly pissed. Toko just rolled her eyes.

"I still don't see why you're taking me to a place like this." she whined.

Debitto turned around, scowling. "What, you don't remember this place?"

"No, I remember it. I just don't see why you're taking me to a pile of rocks."

Debitto grinned. "Brings back memories, doesn't it?"

Toko looked bored. "Not really."

"Well it will. Once I just- Oh! Found it!" Debitto announced proudly, pushing through the trees and bushes and running over to what looked like a huge pile of rocks. That is, except for the small hole, about the height of a grown human, at the base of it. A cave, leading down underground.

Another roll of Toko's eyes. "Great job, Debitto. Do you want us to clap our hands, tell you what good job you did? Or maybe you want a doggie treat? Come here, boy!" she mocked, smirking.

Debitto turned to snarl at her. "You wanna fight, bitch? I could kill you easily." Which was very true, he realized, and instantly wished he hadn't said it. Toko paid it no mind though.

"Don't tempt me. I'd love to screw up your girly, make-up covered face with my fist." She growled back, folding her arms.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST SAY?!"

Jasdero glanced nervously between them. "Don't fight, hii…"

Debitto took a step back towards the two, and Jasdero moved to stand in front of Toko.

"Move, Dero! I'm gonna kill her!" He didn't feel bad about saying it anymore.

Toko grinned. "Come and get me!" she sang, sitting down on a rock and grinning over at him.

"Dero!"

"Both of you, stop!" Jasdero suddenly yelled, pushing Debitto backwards away from Toko. "You've been fighting the whole time since we left school, hii! What's wrong with you?"

"_She's_my problem!" Debitto hissed, glaring over at Toko, who glared right back.

"_You're_ the bastard who got me in a mountain of trouble!"

"To hell with school!"

"Both of you, shut up!"

Jasdero silenced them with the anger in his voice. It took a lot to get him pissed. Toko gave him a surprised look, while Debitto only grunted and walked back to the cave. Jasdero walked over to Toko and grabbed her arm, pulling her along to the rubble despite her protests.

But the anger from the fight soon faded away, leaving a sense of nostalgia. This place had been one they had often visited when they were younger, and it actually did bring back memories. Memories of long hours of hide-and-seek, contests to find and lift the biggest rock, and dares to see who could stay in the cave longest before getting scared. Most of which Debitto usually won.

"It seems so much smaller…" Toko murmured, nearing the opening. She hadn't been here since the twins had… left; she'd never had any reason to.

"Must be because we were smaller back then… of course it would seem bigger to us then." Debitto answered, walking over to stand next to her.

Toko lowered her head, feeling a bit strange. It was still hard to accept, that they were really back. That her best friends… the kids she had spent endless hours with, were back to spend more time with her. Even if they weren't back for good…

"We never really explored in there a lot, did we?" Debitto asked, taking a step closer to the opening. "I wonder how deep it goes…"

"Why don't we explore then, hii?" Jasdero asked from above them. Debitto and Toko looked up to see him climbing near the top of the hill of stones, looking down over at them.

Debitto shrugged. "Maybe if we had a flashlight-"

Before he could finish, Jasdero pulled out something from inside his vest, and tossed it to his brother, who easily caught it. What do you know? A flashlight.

"You were thinking ahead." Debitto said, staring at the small thing. Not the most powerful flashlight he would have wanted to bring, but it would be good enough for a little exploring. He turned to Toko.

"You up for it? Or are you scared?" he asked, grinning. Toko only scowled, and in response, pushed past him and entered the small opening.

"You coming or not?" her voice called out from the darkness, echoing in a strange way. Debitto grinned.

"You coming, Dero?" he called up to his brother.

"In a minute, hii! You go in ahead of me!"

Debitto nodded, doing as he said, and turned on the flashlight.

Toko met him inside near the entrance, obviously not wanting to go further in there without the light. Her eyes shifted around uncomfortably, and Debitto remembered that she wasn't happy in tight, enclosed areas. Or in the dark.

The tunnel slopped downward a bit, the ceiling low, but from the way the echoes sounded, he guessed that there was a wide, open room somewhere up ahead. He turned around towards the entrance.

"Dero, are you coming?" he called, jumping when the echoes made his voice seem so much louder. Toko took a step closer to him, uneasy.

From outside, Jasdero was almost done with his marvelous plan. He'd had enough of them fighting. Maybe if they spent some time together, they'd get along better.

"Almost! Dero just- oops!" he said, grinning.

He heaved hard against a rather large rock that rested on the top of the hill, dislodging it and sending it falling to the floor below. From inside, he heard Toko scream in horror and fear, and Debitto let out a loud swear.

Rocks kept falling, piling on top of each other and blocking the entrance to the cave. So convenient. Almost too easy. Still grinning, Jasdero jumped from the top and landed on the first, large rock he had pushed.

"Are you guys okay, hii?" he yelled. Maybe he'd over done it. If either of them had gotten hurt…

But Debitto's voice, muffled by the wall of rocks, met his ears.

"Dammit, what happened?" he heard from inside, and could tell that his brother was pissed.

"Dero was coming down, and the rocks started falling! Dero is sorry! It's all his fault!" he called back, trying to make it sound like he was sorry.

"It's fine! Just get us out here!"

"I can't!" Jasdero said, trying to keep his pleasure out of his voice. Of course, this was probably true. He wouldn't move these rocks out of the way. He hadn't really thought through on how to get them out…

"Ugh, dammit!" he heard something thump from inside, and he guessed that Debitto had kicked the rock or something.

He heard something else, another voice, and it took him a moment to understand the words spoken.

"Debitto, what are we going to do?" Toko asked, trying to keep her voice calm. But she was obviously panicked. Jasdero actually felt sorry now…

"We're just going to have to look for another way out…"

"Debitto…" she sounded frightened. Something in Jasdero's heart wrenched, and he didn't just feel sorry anymore; he felt horrible.

"Look, we've got a light, and there's bound to be another way out. Stop your whimpering." he heard Debitto snap.

"Don't be mean to her, hii!" Jasdero yelled at him, suddenly angry again. He thought he heard Debitto growl.

"Look Dero, you work on trying to move these rocks while we look for another way out. If we don't find one, then- for God's sake, woman, would you stop clinging to me?" he heard Debitto snap again.

Jasdero's eyes widened in fury, but he couldn't do anything now. "Debi, stop!"

"We'll come back if we don't find anything, okay?" Debitto called, ignoring him. "Try to move these."

Jasdero wanted to call out back at him, but he knew his brother would already be gone. It was silent on the other side. Poor Toko. He'd just stuck her in there with Debitto. What had he been thinking? He should have made sure that _he_ was the one in there… he would take better care of her than _Debitto_.

But there was nothing else he could do now, so he hopped down onto the ground and began pushing…

* * *

"Debitto…"

"Oh, would you be quiet already? I'm just as unhappy as you are…" Debitto muttered, staying a few steps in front of Toko, with the flashlight. She followed closely behind him, and as much as she tried to hide it, he knew she was scared. She made a small whimpering noise, and he sighed.

"Look…" he said, stopping and turning to her, "I'm sorry I snapped at you. I'm just really pissed, okay?"

She looked at him, shocked. She obviously hadn't been expecting an apology.

He continued. "We're gonna get out of here, okay?"

She nodded slowly, looking slightly reassured. Ha. Funny. She'd actually listened to him for once.

"I know you're scared, but-"

"I am _not _scared." She suddenly hissed, glaring at him in the dim light. Debitto grinned.

"Oh, really?" he asked, and flicked the light off. The two were plunged in to pitch black darkness.

He heard her yelp, and then he felt her fling herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his arm.

"Still not scared?" he asked, smug. He looked down and saw that she looked terrified. He didn't need the flashlight to see; his golden, Noah eyes could see fine enough, even in such a dark place. The flashlight was more for her sake.

He saw her close her eyes. "T-turn it back on…"

"Not until you admit you're scared."

"You're such an ass!"

"Come on, it's not that bad!"

"Fine then! I'm scared! Are you happy? Now turn the light back on, you jackass!" she hissed out.

He obeyed, flipping the switch back on and staring into her face, which was so close to his. He saw her blink a few times, her eyes already needing adjusting to the light, and then she looked at him.

Her eyes widened, and he froze, wondering if she'd notice his Noah form in the flashlight's dim light. He turned away from her, using his free hand to mess with his hair, hoping it was covering the crosses on his forehead.

But she lowered her head and let go, stepping away from him, mumbling apologies. He realized she was just embarrassed about clinging to him like that.

And in all honesty, he was a little embarrassed too. He cleared his throat.

"Um… let's get going…" he mumbled, starting off again. She followed, still close behind, though she didn't seem as unhappy. She was silent for a while.

And then she started coughing, and Debitto turned to face her. "You okay?"

She quickly nodded, covering her mouth with her hand. "Yeah, I'm fine… The air just feels really weird. It's almost hard to breathe." she said slowly. He noticed the hoarse sound of her voice.

"We can rest for a bit." he said, wondering why he wasn't having any trouble breathing. Probably because his Noah body was stronger than her feeble human one. She nodded, and they both sat down on the hard ground, Toko sitting very near him. It felt… weird. He fidgeted, nervous.

Neither spoke for a while, so Debitto began shining the light around, actually observing the cave for a change. Not that there was much to see. No bats, no creepy cave monsters. It was pretty dull. Just hard, stone walls with shining water dripping off of them, a few rocks, and- hey, what was that?

He stood up, and Toko gave him a confused look.

"Come here and look at this." Debitto said, offering his hand to help her up. She stared at it for a second, then took it and allowed him to pull her up and over to what had caught his attention.

She gasped at what she saw. More like, what she didn't see. Not too far to their right, the floor simply vanished, opening up to a huge pit. She couldn't see the other side, and even when Debitto shined the light down, she couldn't see the bottom. A look of horror crossed her face.

"We could have easily fallen in…" she whispered, and Debitto, who was still grabbing her hand, squeezed it involuntarily.

"Woah… I wonder how deep it is..." he said, letting go of her hand and stepping right to the edge of the pit.

"Don't!" Toko called franticly, taking a few steps backwards.

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna fall in." Debitto laughed, the sound bouncing off of the walls, giving it an eerie sound.

"Debitto, please-"

"Stop worrying! I'm not a klutz like you." he snickered. He turned, expecting her to be angry, but she only looked worried. He frowned.

"Okay, if you're really so worried, I'll-"

Crack.

His eyes widened as he felt the ground crumble beneath him. The ledge had given in under his weight.

Toko stared in horror as he vanished into the pit, the only evidence that he had been there being the dropped flashlight, shining off across the huge hole.

"D-Debitto?"

Her voice echoed empty, alone in the darkness.

A scream ripped its way out of her throat as the shock faded away to reality.

"Debitto!"

* * *

I'm evil, so I left you with another cliffhanger. You're just gonna have to wait for the next chapter!


	17. Light at the End of the Road

Look, I updated faster than usual! I guess it's because I hated leaving it at a cliffhanger like that, and I didn't have any writer's block for once. So, here you go!

**Disclaimer**: No owning DGM.

* * *

A tearless sob wracked through Toko's body as she kneeled down on the ledge, staring into the darkness below. She didn't care that the ledge could crack again at any moment, bringing her down like Debitto. She couldn't think straight anymore.

She screamed again. "Debitto!"

His name echoed through the cave walls, giving her no answer but the return of her cry. The tears finally came, streaming down her face as she closed her eyes and beat her fist weakly against the ground.

"Debitto… Debitto…" her voice came out hoarse, and she started coughing, tears still staining her dirty face.

"No… no…" she was in hysterics, trying to bring in air, but just letting it all back out with her sobbing.

"Debitto!" she screamed again.

"Shut up and get away from the edge before it cracks again, you idiot!"

Her scream caught in her throat, and she sat there frozen for a moment.

"Didn't you hear me? Get away from there!"

"Debitto?" she whispered hoarsely.

"If you fall, I can't help you!"

She ignored the voice, and reached for the fallen flashlight a few feet away from her.

"You're so stupid!" Debitto's voice practically screamed at her.

But she grabbed the flashlight, and despite the warnings, leaned over the edge to shine it down.

She gasped when she saw him, and a dry sob forced its way out of her.

"Debitto!"

The light from the flashlight made his eyes look golden almost, and he glared up at her from the tiny ledge he was standing on.

"Yeah, I'm fine! But you _won't_ be if you fall! Get away from there, and I'll climb up."

"How?" it didn't even seem possible. It was a miracle that the ledge had been there. If not, then…

"I'll do it. Just do as I say." she heard him growl.

She finally obeyed, stepping away from the edge, though it took all of her will power to do so.

She waited, her breath held, as she heard Debitto climbing up. The flashlight's light remained fixed on the ledge where he would appear. If he would appear… She stood there trembling and biting her lip, waiting…

And then his hands appeared over the edge, followed by his head. Forgetting his warning, Toko rushed over, grabbing him by the arm and helping him up. Though she knew that she wasn't really strong enough to help much, she just needed to touch him, to feel that he was really there, that he was alright…

He pushed himself up, and quickly stepped away from the ledge, taking Toko with him. He was breathing hard, and he had various cuts and scrapes on his hands and arms.

"Why didn't you listen to me? You could have fallen! You could have-"

He cut off as she threw her arms around him, shocking him into silence. She sobbed quietly into his shoulder, her fingers clinging tightly at the fabric of his shirt.

"Toko?" he asked uncertainly.

"Debitto… Debitto…" she whispered through the sobs, her voice slightly muffled.

"Are you alright?" he asked, laying a hand on her head. She was still trembling, he noticed.

"I thought… I thought I had lost you again… Do you know how horrible it would be… to lose you a second time?" she choked out, her breathing labored through the crying and the coughing.

Debitto's eyes softened as he stared at her. His hand began to stroke her hair. "It's okay, Toko… I'm okay…" he murmured, soothing her. Her sobbing slowly calmed down, until it was only a trickle of tears running down her face.

"I didn't know you cared about me so much…" he said quietly, holding her head softly against his chest while she cried. He didn't seem to care that her cold tears were starting to soak through his shirt.

Her fingers tightened their hold on his shirt. "I was so afraid… Debitto… When I thought that I'd have to go through it all again… Losing you… That I'd be alone again…"

Debitto sighed. "You wouldn't be alone… You'd still have Jasdero…"

Her tears, which were starting to dry, picked up again. "I'd be alone in here… And Jasdero… Jasdero isn't _you_… I don't think I could stand losing either of you. Not again…"

Debitto's head rested on hers, and he closed his eyes. "Don't worry. We're not going anywhere. You're not going to lose us again…"

And the two stood there in the darkness for a long time, arms wrapped around each other, while Toko cried her fears away.

* * *

"Are you sure this way will lead us out?" Toko asked, her hand resting in Debitto's.

Debitto only shrugged, looking at the dark tunnel before them. "Well, it slopes upwards. That's what we need. To get back aboveground. So this is our best bet."

Toko lowered her head. "I'm scared…"

Debitto grinned. "So you're finally admitting it?" he teased her, squeezing her hand. "Don't worry. This will get us out of here." he said, starting to pull her along. She willingly followed, keeping close beside him.

The tunnel wasn't very wide, and it was getting smaller as they progressed further. Though it did seem like a good thing that it was leading them upward. Toko, who had been having trouble breathing earlier, found that there seemed to be more oxygen here, despite the small size of the tunnel.

They traveled like this for a while, until Debitto stopped, having Toko stop with him.

"We're gonna have to walk single file from now on." he said.

From beside him, Toko's breath caught in her throat. He quickly pulled her closer to him.

"It'll be fine… Just for a little while… I think we're really close to the top now." He whispered, reassuring her. He looked at her face, seeing her trying to put on a determined expression.

"Alright…" she finally said, quietly.

Debitto smiled. "Alright then… I'll go first, okay?"

She nodded, and allowed Debitto to step into the front. The cave walls quickly closed in on them as they walked further, Debitto leading with the flashlight while Toko followed, clinging to the back of his shirt. The ceiling became lower and lower, until they were ducking to get by.

"Debitto…" Toko said from the back, after they were reduced to crawling on the ground because of the lowness of the ceiling. She could feel her hands and knees getting scrapped up.

"It's okay, I think we're here." Debitto answered confidentially.

"Really?"

"Yeah, because we hit a dead end."

"_What_?!"

"No, it's okay. It's the end, but it's just dirt. If I get it out of the way… Ah!"

"Wha-" Toko started, then squinted as she realized what had happened. Debitto had broken through the dirt, letting in bright sunlight.

"We did it…" she heard Debitto say quietly, and then the shafts of sunlight grew bigger as he clawed at the dirt, making a bigger opening. When the opening was large enough, he pulled himself through, out into the fresh, open air.

As soon as he was out, he turned around and knelt down, offering his hand to Toko to help her out. She gladly took it, and he pulled her out. The two stood up, face to face, silently staring at each other for a few seconds. They didn't let go of each other's hands.

Debitto was the first to speak.

"You're a mess."

"So are you."

"But I'm still sexy, right?" he asked, grinned as Toko rolled her eyes.

"Oh yes. I think I'll just swoon over you."

"Go ahead then."

"Hm, not now. Let's clean up first. Then we'll see about the swooning." Toko responded, grinning.

They finally took the chance to look around; neither recognized the place. It was all forest, with the sound or running water drifting towards them from not too far away.

"Yeah, cleaning up sounds nice. That sounds like a creek." Debitto said, and tugged her along. She didn't protest.

It was indeed a creek. Debitto knelt down, cupping water in his hands and splashing it on his face. It felt so nice… He started washing dirt and dried blood off of his hands, though there wasn't so much blood than dirt.

Toko sat down beside him, dipping her hands into the water and washing them off. She knew she must look horrible. She started trying to rub the dirt off of her face, but it was hard when she couldn't really see what she was doing.

"Want some help?" Debitto asked, leaning over and taking her face in his now clean hands. Toko felt herself blushing underneath the dirt, and hoped that he didn't notice.

"Ah, yeah, that would be nice…" she muttered.

His fingers worked gently at the dirt on her face, wiping it away with the creek water. Debitto stared as she closed her eyes, and wondered how she still managed to look pretty, even after being dragged through a cave, crying half the time.

Wait, did he just think of her as pretty?

His hands paused, and this made Toko open her eyes to look at him with that soft, blue-eyed stare of hers.

"What?" she asked, curious.

Debitto felt himself leaning forward, his thumb brushing softly against her lips. Toko didn't draw back; her gaze softening, she actually leaned closer as well. They were so close how. He could feel it, her soft breath on his face, his lips. Everything inside him seemed to pause, waiting.

_So close… _

"Debi! Toko! There you are, hii!" a loud voice called to them.

Debitto swore softly, and quickly pulled away, the moment shattered. Toko looked down at the ground quickly, hiding her blush as Jasdero jogged up to them.

"You two made it out!" he said breathlessly, glancing between the two. "Are you okay, hii?" he asked, and noticed Toko's blush. He frowned. "What happened?"

"Nothing. We were just washing off. God, we're both a mess." Debitto growled, standing up. "And I'm so sore…"

Jasdero glanced down at Toko, still frowning. "Toko?"

"I-I'm fine." She said quickly, and stood up as well. "I want to go home…"

Jasdero finally smiled. "While you were gone, Dero ran back to school and got the things you left." He said, handing Toko the hoodie that she had discarded for tennis. He also threw Debitto his jacket without a second glance, earning a confused look from the black haired twin. What was up with his brother?

Toko slipped on the piece of clothing and smiled. "Thanks, Jasdero."

Jasdero's hand founds its way to hers, and he latched tightly onto it. She didn't protest, but she looked slightly embarrassed.

"Come on, Dero knows the way back to Toko's house." He said.

He started leading her back without giving his brother a second glance. Debitto frowned, following them.

"Hey, Dero!" he called.

Jasdero turned around to stare at his brother. Debitto froze in his tracks. Jasdero was _glaring _at him. And not just any glare. He looked sseriously _pissed_.

Without answering, the blond twin turned back and led Toko away, leaving his brother staring at the two of them, wondering what on earth had gotten into Jasdero.

* * *

See? All is well!

Or is it?

It about killed me, having Jasdero cut in on Toko and Debitto right before they kissed. (For that is what probably would have happened.) But something else has to happen before there will be any kissing. Sorry!


	18. Dreamsleep

Here's another long chapter for you. No D.gray-man chapters for a while, so I'll try to update more often to try and make up for that. Silly Hoshino...

I feel like this is a filler chapter. But it's actually one of my favorites. I don't know... You tell me. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** Hoshino owns. Not me.

* * *

She was 99.99 sure that she was dreaming.

For one, she remembered going to bed. It had already been late when she'd gotten home, and she had been completely worn out. All she did was make dinner for the three of them and go straight to sleep.

The second reason, she was staring at herself. The only time you could do that was in dreams, right? The kind of dreams where you watch what you're doing, instead of seeing from your eyes… like watching your body as a spirit.

That's what she was here. A spirit.

How strange. It only took her a second to recognize the scene before her, and she let out a small gasp when she did.

She was sitting with Debitto at the side of the creek, looking up at him with a dirty, tearstained face. The scene from the day before. Where they almost…

"_Ugh, I look horrible."_ Toko thought, staring at her other self before her. The two in the scene didn't seem to be able to see her. They were just staring at each other, leaning in closer… closer…

Too close.

She wanted to call out, make them stop. She didn't want this. Didn't want to see this happen…

The kiss that would have taken place if Jasdero had not interrupted.

She opened her mouth to yell, but no sound came out. Her hand flew to her throat, but there was nothing. Her body wouldn't obey her; her feet were planted against the ground and they weren't moving.

In this scene, there was no Jasdero. Here, it was only her and Debitto.

Nothing to stop it.

She saw Debitto's lips meet hers, and her other self didn't pull away. Quite the opposite; she moved in, her hands reaching up to touch Debitto's face, so run through his hair, all the while his lips claiming hers as their own.

Her eyes wouldn't close; she had to watch the whole thing.

And then she saw that she had been wrong about Jasdero. She saw blond mixed in with the trees some distance away. Jasdero, staring at the two with a look of pure torment on his face. The make-up around his eyes was ruined with his tears.

His tears made her want to cry herself, but her body wouldn't even allow her that. Is this what it would have been like if he had been a few seconds late? Her other self and Debitto were still deep in the kiss, oblivious to the pain they were causing Jasdero. They finally broke apart, and then she found herself.

Her limbs finally obeyed, and then she was sprinting, away from that place. Away from the soft expression in her other self's eyes. Away from Debitto's smile. Away from Jasdero's tortured look. She knew it was just a dream, but this knowledge couldn't stop the tears from coming.

Toko finally looked back, and she was gone from the place. No more Debitto, Jasdero, or her… She was alone here… wherever here was. Was this another part of this horrible dream? She wanted to wake up, leave this place completely behind… But how do you make dreams end?

"They end when they're over. Just wait." A voice said from behind her, and she whirled around with a gasp of surprise.

It was him.

Her eyes widened as she stared at him silently. The second time he'd entered her dreams. Black hair mixing with the long blond, the golden stare that rooted her to the spot… He leaned forward, taking her face in his hands.

"Let the dream last while it still can… Reality is a lot worse." he said quietly, and she was pulled closer to him.

She found her voice. "Who are-"

He held a finger to her lips, silencing her. "That's a secret."

Of course. This was just a dream. He probably didn't even have a name.

He smiled, and it sent shivers down her spine. But in a bad way; she liked it.

"I've got a name. It's just secret."

He'd read her mind.

He grinned, showing perfect, white teeth, and nodded.

"Let the dream last while it still can." he repeated, and then his beautiful face was inches from hers.

Toko gasped, but then he silenced her with his kiss.

She'd never been kissed before. Not even in her dreams. But then why did this feel so real? She felt herself responding, one arm reaching up to wrap around his neck. Her heart beat at an irregular pace, and she fought for breath as he seemed to steal it from her. She closed her eyes, memorizing the wonderful feeling…

When she opened her eyes, he was still there, but they were somewhere else. She soon recognized it as her own room. His eyes were wide, and he quickly pulled away, backing up to the door. Toko's eyes followed his movements, half open, her vision blurred.

He reached the door, and turned around. She panicked.

"Wait!"

He stopped in the doorway, his back to her. She saw one of his hands move to touch his lips…

"See you later, Motoko." he whispered, and the door closed behind him.

Toko fell back to the bed, too weary to call out again. Her eyes closed, and she drifted off into senseless dreams full of blurs of colors and words that never made any sense…

* * *

"Toko? Toko? Where are you?"

His voice echoed through the silent town, sending shivers up his spine. This place was creepy. Where was everyone?

He ran his tongue across his stitches nervously, and looked around again. Nothing. It was so dark out… Not even the moon was in the sky. Only black clouds, moving quickly through the night, though there was no wind…

"Toko?" Jasdero called again, and listened to the echoes his voice made.

In the corner of his vision, he thought he saw a flicker of movement. He turned quickly to see a figure dart into a black alley, long hair flowing out behind them.

"Toko?" Jasdero called eagerly, running after the vanished figure. It had to be her. Who else would it be?

As he emerged from the alley into another street, he saw the same figure waiting at the end of the road. The face was hidden in shadow, but he could tell that it was a woman.

"Toko!" the blond called out cheerfully, running towards her. She darted away down another street as he neared her.

"Wait, come back! Don't leave Dero alone here!" the boy called out desperately, real fear taking hold of him. He didn't like this place. Where was Debitto? Why was Toko running from him? Where was everyone?

She was standing at the end of the next street, waiting for him again. This time, he walked slower. Something was wrong. What was that beside her? It looked like a pile of… lumpy things. What in the world?

"Toko?" he called uncertainly, his pace slowing. He saw the girl raise something in her hand, and then toss it to the side.

Jasdero flinched back as the fire sprung up, hurting his eyes and illuminating the unknown pile beside her. He looked first to her face, recognizing it as his friend, and then to the pile…

The nausea hit him before he fully realized what it was. He feel to his knees, staring, horrified, at the mound of bodies. Faces he had never seen. Some he had.

Cassie. Tyki. Toko's mother.

Debitto.

Debitto. Dead. Staring at him with no expression, eyes glazed over. Never to see again.

Jasdero screamed, the cry cutting harshly through the town's silence. Toko watched, her face expressionless, as she pulled another object out of her pocket.

"Debi… Debi…" Jasdero whimpered, crawling forward a few feet. He stopped when he saw movement from Toko.

He stared up at her as she took a slow step towards him. He could only stare, horrified, as she raised a sharp, shining knife.

"_Walking through the town of the dead…_" her voice startled him, crystal clear and horribly beautiful as she sang to her own tune.

"Toko… why?" Jasdero asked, staring up at her, tears streaming down his face.

"_With blood and corpses the crows are fed…_" she continued, staring down at him.

"Why did you do this?" he suddenly yelled, standing up.

"_That night the_ _monsters stole her from bed…_"

He stared in horror and hatred as her expression changed. It was one that Road often wore. The grin she always put on before she killed an exorcist.

"Toko…" he whispered, hatred now overpowered by fear and horror.

"_And then the humans said, 'Off with her head.'_"

Jasdero screamed, running forward as she raised the knife.

He was too late.

With that grin, she slit her own throat, blood spilling onto the ground with a sickening splash. Jasdero caught her body before it hit the ground, and stared at her face that still held that terrible smile.

* * *

Jasdero screamed, sitting up quickly as he was jolted out of his nightmare. He looked around franticly, and his breathing calmed as he realized that it had only been a dream. Debitto slept away on the couch, a few feet from the bed that Toko had made up for Jasdero on the floor.

Jasdero swallowed hard, crawling out from the pile of blankets that Toko had given him to make sure he would be warm enough. Quietly, he crept over to his sleeping brother, watching the rising and falling of his chest as he breathed slowly. Jasdero sighed.

He was alive… it had all been a dream… Jasdero wanted to cry in relief, but he help back. There was one other person to check on.

He opened Toko's door slowly, careful not to wake her. He saw her on the bed, and the urge to cry hit him again, stronger this time. A few tears pooled in his eyes, and he quickly wiped them away, drawing nearer to the sleeping girl.

There she lay, so peaceful, no terrible grin on her face.

A quiet sob escaped him, and he quickly covered his mouth. Too late. He saw her blue eyes open, blinking sleepily in confusion, finally turning to him.

"Jasdero?" her voice was slurred slightly with sleep.

Jasdero wiped away a few more tears, kneeling down beside her.

"Dero is sorry… he didn't mean to wake you up…" he said quietly. "I'll go back-"

His eyes widened as her hand brushed against his cheek, wiping away a few tears that he had missed.

"Did something happen?" she asked.

Jasdero shook his head, but he was crying again. "Dero had a bad dream…" he explained. "B-but it's okay now…"

"Do you want to sleep with me?"

The question startled him, but she looked like she meant it. She was clearly tired, but she looked concerned.

"You… don't mind?" he asked.

Toko shook her head. "If it'll make you feel better…"

Jasdero nodded, and she smiled and moved over a bit, making room for him. Jasdero crawled in under the covers, feeling the warmth of her skin against his. He instantly felt safe here.

"Good night, Dero…" Toko mumbled, her head resting back on the pillow. "Don't have any more nightmares…"

Jasdero smiled, the tears finally stopping. As he stared at her like this, so peaceful, kind… his love for her seemed to throb in his heart. He closed his eyes, touching his forehead to her shoulder.

"Good night. Dero loves you…"

But Toko was already fast asleep.

* * *

Everything was a whirl of colors.

Debitto glanced around the ball room. He was looking for something, but wouldn't really remember what he was looking for. So many people, so many different colors, different faces… Music played in the background, but he wasn't really paying attention to it.

Women would stop and ask him to dance, but he would just quickly brush them off. He wasn't looking for someone to dance with. But if he just knew _what_ he was looking for…

"Would you care to dance with me?" a voice asked from behind him. He was about to whirl around and respond angrily, until he saw who it was.

Toko smiled at him, waiting for his response, as he stared in shock. She was wearing a beautiful gown the exact color of her eyes. Her hands were gloved, and her black hair was straightened and rested on her shoulders, seeming to shine in the dancing light of the ball room. But it wasn't the dress or the make-up on her face that was beautiful. Everything in the room seemed to pale in comparison to her, her smile, the gentle way she carried herself. _She_ was beautiful.

And then he realized that she was waiting for a response. He swallowed and quickly nodded, taking her small hands in his. How had he never noticed before? They looked so fragile, delicate. Like doll hands.

A new song started, and before he could say anything, they were in the crowd, twirling and dancing as the colors flew past them.

It took Debitto a moment to find his voice. "Toko…"

"Hm?" she asked, dancing in time as he lead her. Of course he'd been taught to dance, though he didn't like it. She danced perfectly with him, that gentle smile never leaving her face.

"You look…" he started, looking for the right words. Dazzling? Stunning?

"Amazing…" he finished, unable to come up with anything better. Now he really felt like an idiot.

But her laugh startled him. "You look amazing too."

Debitto felt the blush rising to his face. _She_ was saying that _he_ looked good? She was clearly the more stunning of the two…

The song changed, slowing down. Toko smiled, moving in time to the soft music, while Debitto thought of something else to say. Nothing came to mind.

"Come with me for a second." Toko said suddenly, pulling him away from the crowd. He followed her obediently, confused, as she led him to one of the back corners of the room. Less people hung out around here.

"What is it?" Debitto asked as she stopped and turned to him, and smile still glued to her face. God, he couldn't stop staring…

"Are you sad?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"About earlier. We got interrupted." she went on.

"What do you mean?"

She laughed, as though it was obvious. "Our kiss."

Debitto blinked, the blush coming on again. "K-kiss?"

"That Jasdero interrupted. Are you sad that it didn't happen?" she asked again, tilting her head to the side.

Debitto stared, unsure of what to say. He didn't even know the answer himself. Was he upset? He thought for a moment…

He started as he felt her hand brush his cheek. Looking over at her, her eyes seemed to soften, and she leaned forward.

"Because we can pick up right where we left off." she breathed.

Debitto's heart beat rapidly in his chest. What about Jasdero? He hadn't seen him. She really wanted this? He felt himself leaning forward, his hand reach up to hold her face…

Just like before, so close…

But then he gave a sigh, and pulled back.

"I can't." he said quietly.

"Why not?" Toko asked, confused now.

Debitto turned away from her, searching the crowd for his blond brother. He took a moment before answering her.

"Because Jasdero loves you."

Toko blinked, then touched his cheek again, wiping away a tear that Debitto hadn't realized was there.

"But you love me too." she whispered.

Debitto turned back to her with a tortured expression.

"I… I…"

"Are you willing to give up your own happiness… for his?" she asked, looking sympathetic, caring…

"I don't know… but what I did… it really hurt him… I shouldn't have…"

Her laugh startled him again.

"First come, first serve." she said, wagging her finger playfully. Debitto frowned. This wasn't supposed to be funny.

"Look, Toko-"

Her arms wrapped around him, cutting him off, and she laid her head against his chest. Listening to his heart.

"Don't I get a choice in this?" she asked, looking up at him.

Debitto swallowed. "You'd pick him."

He felt her sigh, and she closed her eyes.

"You never know… what I may do… Maybe I'll pick you. Maybe Jasdero. Or maybe neither of you."

She let go, stepping away, and touched his cheek one last time.

"But you'll have to be awake to see that, won't you?"

And Debitto opened his eyes to stare at the bright, morning sunlight.

* * *

And there we go. Now I need sleep. As always. Like I said, I liked this chapter. -shrugs-


	19. Sincere

I'm too tired to go back and look for mistakes... I need my sleep...

**Disclaimer:** No own DGM. Just want sleep...

* * *

_CRASH._

Debitto sat up quickly, his eyes wide. Dammit, he'd just fallen back asleep… What the hell had woken him? He glanced around.

"Ah, I'm really sorry… I woke you up…" Toko said quickly, picking up the plate she had dropped. She was already fully dressed. Ah, right… she'd be going to school…

Debitto rolled off of the couch, glancing at the empty bed Jasdero had slept in. He'd asked to sleep away from Debitto the night before, making Debitto even more worried. Jasdero was never angry at him… So where was he now?

"Where's Dero?" he asked, looking up at Toko, who was busy making breakfast. She glanced back at him, pausing.

"Um, er… he came in during the night… He said he'd had a bad dream, and he was crying… I was so tired that I, um… I kind of let him sleep with me." she admitted, turning away from him.

Debitto's mind didn't work too well processing this information.

"He _slept with you_?"

"Um, yeah… he's still sleeping in there…"

Debitto was instantly up and walking down the hall to Toko's room.

Damn him! Dammit, dammit! Who did he think he was? That he could just waltz right in there and _sleep with her_?

"Wait, Debitto!" Toko was up now, running to catch him. She grabbed onto his arm as he grabbed onto the door handle to her room.

"Please don't-"

"Why'd you let him do that?" Debitto rounded on her, furious. She should know better. Letting him in there, the little…

He stopped when he saw the tears in her eyes.

"I… I…" she started, the tears falling down her face.

Debitto's eyes widened. "Oh, Toko, no, I'm sorry…" he said softly, taking her face in his hands. He quickly brushed away the tears. Ugh, _he_ was the idiot here…

He touched his forehead to hers, closing his eyes. "I'm sorry…"

She was out of his grasp before he realized what was happening. She pushed away from him, her face blushing red. But she looked angry.

"Don't do that."

Debitto blinked. "Do what?"

"Touch me like that."

Debitto frowned. "But yesterday-"

"I've had time to think since yesterday." she turned away, grabbing her bag. "I'm going to school… You can make yourself something to eat."

"Toko, wait!" Now he was the one chasing her…

He grabbed her by the arm as she had grabbed him a moment ago. She pulled back, struggling.

"Let go."

"Toko..." Debitto growled.

"Let-"

"Kiss me, dammit!"

Everything seemed to stop; her struggling, his breathing, and time itself. But his anger continued to rage on.

"You were going to yesterday! Why do you have a problem with it now?" he asked, gripping her arm tightly.

He was afraid she was going to cry again, but she didn't. "Debitto, let go!" she yelled, struggling.

"If it hadn't been for Jasdero, then you would have! You know it! So kiss me already!"

"I can't!"

Her cry silenced him. Her eyes were closed, and her teeth were gritted together. He released her, and she took a step back.

"You can't." he said, staring at her blankly. "Why? Is it Dero?"

She shook her head, her eyes still closed. Maybe bracing herself for his anger. But he wasn't angry anymore.

He turned away, going to sit back down on the couch.

"Just go to your fucking school."

He heard the door close and knew she was gone.

* * *

_Idiot…_

What the hell did he know?

She couldn't kiss him.

There was already someone else she was in love with.

But her hand reached up to touch her lips. No. This was her decision. She wasn't going back.

She pushed her sorrow down deep within her heart and made her way to hell.

* * *

The sound of the bedroom door made Debitto angry again.

He heard his brother creeping through the hallway, trying to be quiet. What was the point? He'd already made things bad. Why bother trying to not wake him up? Why not make it even worse? Why not-

"Debi?"

He could barely contain the rant that was coming on.

His brother made his way over to the couch where Debitto lying. Debitto refused to make room for him.

Jasdero shifted to his other foot, uncomfortable. "Is Toko at school already?"

"Yup. The bitch is gone. Finally. I thought she'd never leave."

Jasdero's mouth opened in shock. "D-Debi! She's not-"

"By the way, did you have fun last night?" he interrupted his twin.

Jasdero's eyes widened. "Wh-what do you-"

"Don't be stupid Dero. I bet you had a great time. Acting so pathetic and innocent to get in her bed. I didn't think you were like that, Dero. She wouldn't give me any of the details, but I'm sure you were up kissing and being all happy, while laughing at me for being the one missing out on groping her." God, half of what he was saying didn't make any sense, not even to him. But he was too angry to care, and it was all spilling out of him. He finally turned to his brother.

Jasdero was crying, but it didn't bother him like it had bothered him when Toko cried. The stupid bitch had moved in and tried to replace Jasdero.

"D-Dero didn't… he went because… because…"

"Stop the act, Jasdero."

His brother broke into sobs, startling Debitto.

"D-Dero had a bad dream… that Debi… Debi…" he shuddered, remembering the way his brother's eyes had stared blankly at him. Debitto, dead, lifeless…

The black haired twin looked confused. "What?"

"Dero dreamed that Debi died… Debitto was dead… and Dero was alone… Toko, even Toko…" he whimpered out, trying to rub the tears out of his eyes, but they kept flowing. "Dero is sorry… sorry…"

Dammit, why was he _always_ the idiot in every situation?

"No, Dero, I'm sorry… I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. This morning, Toko and I… well, we fought, and I was still angry… God, I'm sorry… I took it out on you…"

Jasdero sniffled. "D-Debi doesn't hate Dero?"

"Of course not, idiot. You're my brother. I couldn't hate you if I tried." he growled out.

Jasdero hung his head. "Then… does that make Dero a bad person?"

Debitto raised an eyebrow. "What? Why does that make you bad?"

More tears sprung up in his brother's eyes. "Because… Because… yesterday when Dero saw Debi with Toko… Dero… Dero really hated Debi then…"

"That doesn't make you a bad person, Dero."

Jasdero quieted, staring at his brother through his tears. "Hii?"

"You just… I mean, I can understand why you were angry… I shouldn't have… I mean…" he swallowed his anger as he remembered Toko's rejection. "You like her. Of course you'd hate me for doing that…"

He sighed. Jasdero had stopped crying now. "Debi doesn't hate Dero? Really?"

"Nope. Never." Debitto grinned.

Jasdero wiped the rest of the tears away. "What do we do now, hii?"

Debitto grinned. "Well, it _is_ school time, and we _should_ be there."

Jasdero frowned. "But Toko will be angry, like yesterday…"

"We just won't get her in trouble this time."

"… Dero is hungry…"

"Then we'll grab some school food. They have lunches and stuff there, right?"

Jasdero finally smiled. "Thanks, Debi."

Debitto laughed, punching his brother playfully on the arm.

"Let's go."

* * *

"Wait, _what_ happened?"

Toko sighed. "Cassie, I already told you twice."

"But I still don't believe it! There's no way! It's just some story you made up, right? Right?" the blond girl asked quickly, her blue eyes wide.

Toko rolled her eyes. "I'm not lying. We went through that whole stupid cave and then he tried to kiss me."

"But _you_ wanted to kiss him too!"

Toko frowned. "No."

"Don't lie! I can tell when you're lying!" her friend scolded her. They were sitting outside. Lunch time. They could only do this on nice, sunny days.

"I'm not lying! I don't want to kiss him."

Cassie sighed. "But still, he _asked_ you to kiss him this morning? What the _hell_?"

"Yeah… stupid bastard…" Toko muttered.

Cassie shook her head. "No, I mean, he should have just done it! Why ask? Maybe this guy isn't so bad after all…"

"Whose side are you on anyway?" Toko asked, annoyed.

"Hey, I'm just saying-"

"Hey, Toko!" a voice called over, and the two girls looked up to see one of Toko's classmates running over to them.

"Ah, yeah, what?" Toko asked, standing up.

"There are two guys over there looking for you." The boy said, breathlessly. "Do you know them? They're total freaks!"

Oh dammit. They followed her here _again_.

"They're not freaks…" Toko growled, starting to walk in the direction that the boy had pointed out, "But they are gonna be dead pretty soon…"

Cassie jumped up, following her. "Do you think he's gonna kiss you here? I hope he does!" she giggled.

"Can it, Cassie. I have two boys to murder." she hissed, and her friend fell silent.

Ah, there they were, in the same stupid clothing as the day before, and attracting a ton of attention. Quite a few students had gathered around them, and Debitto seemed to be telling them some kind of story, judging by his wild hand motions. She drew a bit nearer, listening… it was hard to hear since their backs were to her…

"-and then he tossed us in the water, but the stupid thug didn't think that we could actually swim, so we got away pretty easily, even though we were hurt. The guy wasn't too happy to be outrun and outsmarted by two twelve year olds." Debitto was saying, grinning. Toko's eyes widened.

_That_ story?

"So Jasdero and I had to keep it low for a few years. We're not gonna stay in this shitty town though. We've seen bigger and better places." the boy bragged, unaware of the approaching danger.

"Where did you stay?" one girl asked, her eyes wide.

"Ah, we've got this huge place where we live with-"

"You're such an idiot!" Toko screamed, raising her foot and kicking Debitto in the back with all of her force, sending the boy flat on his face on the ground.

"You follow me to school, ask around for me, and tell stupid stories like that?" her anger wasn't through yet. She stood there, fuming, as she waited for him to get back up.

"Aw, dammit, that hurt!" Debitto yelled, turning to glare at her. "I didn't deserve that!" Okay, that was a lie, he knew that he did.

"You deserve a hell of a lot worse than that, you bastard! Get your ass out of here!"

"Toko?" Jasdero clung to Toko's arm, making her turn to him. "Dero is sorry. Debi made him come here."

"Traitor!" Debitto yelled.

Toko immediately smiled. "It's okay, Jasdero, you're not an idiot like him."

Jasdero smiled back, grinning over at his brother, who just glared at him.

"Well, we came to see you, and we even waited until you had a break." Debitto said, rubbing his head where he'd hit it on the ground. "At least let us talk to you."

Toko sighed. Ugh, this was probably going to turn out so bad if she let them stay…

"Alright, fine. What do you have to say?"

* * *

...

Debitto is an ass.


	20. Le Prince Bleu

Finally hit the twenty mark! I'm sorry this took a while! I've had horrible writer's block. I'm going to go back to updating every Sunday, so no more two charters a week unless I'm really motivated. Two a week is just really tiring for me.

So I won't make you wait any longer; here's the chapter!

**Disclaimer:** The usual.

* * *

"So you're saying you're sorry."

A nod.

"And you want me to forgive you."

Another nod.

"That you're a jealous asshole."

"Hey, I never said jeal-"

"Like I'll believe this shit!" Toko yelled, stomping away from Debitto, who followed her. Jasdero and Cassie gave each other a glance, both grinning, and followed as well.

"Really, Toko, I'm sorry! I was being really stupid this morning!" Debitto said, grabbing her arm. Toko whipped around, giving him a glare that would have made small children cry.

"_I'll_ say! I don't think you even know _how_ stupid you are! Asking me to do something like that!" she hissed, lowering her voice as to not draw too much attention. It didn't work well, as people had been watching from the beginning.

Debitto blinked, then started laughing. "You're angry about me asking you to kiss me?" he asked.

Toko flushed red. "I'm angry about _everything_, not just that!"

"But _especially_that!" Cassie muttered to Jasdero, who broke out into a fit of giggles.

Toko rounded on her friend. "Whose side are you on?"

Cassie only laughed. "The one that gets you a boyfriend."

"Oh, shut it!"

Debitto frowned. Boyfriend was not a word he liked. Because if he was her boyfriend, that would make her…

He stopped. Toko? Girlfriend? No, no, no, no! Those words did not go together in the same sentence.

But then why did he…

He was jolted out of his thinking by Toko's voice. "... go already, Debitto?"

He turned to her, confused. "Huh?"

"Can you let go of me already? Ugh, you're so… so…" Toko threw her free hand up in the air, lacking a word to describe him. He grinned, and held on.

"So what?" he asked. He probably shouldn't be pushing her like this. But seeing the frustration on her face pleased him.

"So immature! Now if you don't let go now, you're gonna be in a lot of pain!"

He let go, startled. "Have I ever mentioned how much you've changed? I mean, you weren't always this-"

"Yeah, and I'm not always this bitchy either! It's entirely your fault!"

"_My_ fault?"

"Oh, really guys, stop fighting. The idiot said he was sorry." Cassie said, clapping a hand on Debitto's back and putting her other hand on Toko's head. The two stared at her for a moment, then turned away and backed up a few steps.

"Fine." Toko spat. "Now can you go home? Lunch will be over soon, and I'm already in enough trouble as it is." She started to walk away from them.

"Yeah, sure. We'll find a way to entertain ourselves. Right, Dero?" Debitto asked, turning to his brother. Huh? Where was Jasdero?

"Toko! Dero wants to go to class with you today!" Debitto turned around, eyes wide, to see Jasdero practically tackle Toko on her way back to where she had left her books, causing her to fall, with Jasdero falling on top of her.

"Jasdero!"

"No! You can't come to class with me, moron!" Toko yelled, struggling to get out from under the boy. Jasdero lifted himself up, and Toko slipped out from under him, her face red.

"Why not, hii?" Jasdero asked, trying to give her an innocent look. She frowned.

"No. Just, no."

"Aww…"

"Dero…" Debitto hissed, grabbing his brother's arm and pulled him up. "Let's go back now…"

"Okay!" Jasdero said happily, helping Toko up.

"Just go…" Toko said with a sigh. "You guys waste too much of my energy…"

Debitto was already walking away, with Jasdero close at his heels. "Yeah, see you later."

He froze when he heard the laughing.

A group of boys, some looking older, some younger, were in fits of laughter. They were staring at Toko as she walked away, grinning their stupid heads off.

"Man, what a bitch!"

Debitto twitched.

"Talk about anger management problems! I thought my mom was bad!" Another yelled, loud enough that Debitto was sure Toko had heard. If she had, she didn't show it.

Glancing to his brother, Debitto saw that he looked just as pissed as he felt.

"But I'm not really surprised." The one who had spoken first said. "My dad told me some stories. When she was little, he said she tried to defend some kids that God cursed."

"Haha, what a freak!"

Debitto saw Cassie turn around, looking furious, but Toko grabbed her arm, not even turning to look at the boys. Cassie bit her lip, and Debitto caught a look at the expression on Toko's face.

Empty. Blank. But he could sense something else hidden there.

Misery? Torment?

"No wonder she has no friend then!" Debitto's attention snapped back to the boys, his anger building.

"What about blondie?"

"She _is_ a dumb blond, after all."

This made them laugh harder, and Cassie tried to take another step towards them. Toko still held her back. To Debitto's surprise, her gaze flickered over to him, still hiding those hidden emotions, and their eyes met. She quickly looked away.

But he understood now.

This was _their_ fault.

Because she had tried to save them. Because they had been her friend. Because they existed in the first place.

But why wasn't she angry? With that temper of hers, he'd expected to spring at their throats like an angry tiger. Nothing. Why? How was she able to ignore it as if it happened all the time?

_Happened all the time…?_

No… No, no, no…

Suddenly, his anger was uncontrollable.

Toko's eyes widened as he took the few quick steps to them, and grabbed the one that seemed to be the leader by his throat.

"It's because of you! People like you! You stupid humans!" he snarled, tightening his grip. "Stupid humans like you make this world filthy! If people like you didn't exist, then maybe you wouldn't all have to be destroyed!"

Jasdero's eyes widened even more that Toko's and he rushed forward, grabbing onto his brother's arm.

"Debi, no!"

"Shut up, Dero! People like them really deserve to die! I'll kill him!" Debitto yelled, turning his furious gaze to his brother, who flinched back.

She was over to him in two seconds.

She hit _hard_.

Debitto let go, stunned, as his hand traveled to his cheek where Toko had slapped him. The boy stumbled back, coughing, but no one paid attention. All eyes were on him, and her.

"Forget it."

He stared at her, still shocked.

"Idiots like them aren't worth it. I'm used to this by now." She said, her expression blank.

His eyes widened, and he grabbed her by her shoulders. "You shouldn't _have_ to deal with this! Is this why you turned out like this?" he asked, shaking her lightly.

She stared back at him, expressionless, as her words cut through him. "I couldn't just sit around and wait for you to save me like you always did. I had to learn how to defend myself. I'm not the weak girl you used to know."

"Toko…" Debitto heard Jasdero whimper out. He let go of her, letting her take a step back.

This was their fault…

"So just forget about it." She said again, her words harsher this time. She turned, leaving him stunned and in silent torment.

"Wait, Toko-"

"So _these_ are the monsters she tried to save?" one of the boys spoke up, grinning. Everyone's attention whirled to him. Toko's included.

Before Debitto could react, the boy who he had been holding by the neck had him in the same situation. A wild look shone in his eyes, as he gripped even tighter than Debitto had.

"Debi!" Jasdero shouted, alarmed. He took a step forward, but another boy grabbed him, holding him back.

"Are you demons or something? You came back from the dead!" he asked, grin widening. Debitto grabbed his hand, shaking. Dammit, no air… How did he let a human catch him?

"Where are the scars? They said you had scars on your head or something to show that you're sinners." He said, sounding so calm. One of the other boys laughed, stepping forward to grab a handful of Debitto's bangs, pulling them back. They looked disappointed.

"Didn't God throw you out from this place?"

"I'll kill you so you can see if that stupid God of yours even exists." A furious snarl sounded from behind him.

The boy turned, and before Debitto could really grasp what had happened, he was free from the boy's death grip, and the boy was on the ground, holding his hand to his nose while he screamed in pain, blood oozing from between his fingers.

Toko stood above him, fury clear on her face, one of her hands balled into a fist covered in the boy's blood.

She delivered a kick to his head, sending him further to the ground, then bent down to grab him by the front of his now bloodied shirt.

"I've put up with everything until this point! I've dealt with you people calling me a monster! I've lived through it all without crying! But don't you _dare_ hurt either of them! I'll kill you!" she screamed.

She was going to punch him again, but Jasdero grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"Please, Toko, don't!"

She turned to him, then her eyes shifted to Debitto, who still looked shocked. Without warning, she pushed the boy away and stood up.

"We're going home, guys."

Debitto blinked. "We?"

"I'm never coming back to this place." Toko said quietly, kneeling down to wipe the blood off on the grass.

This alarmed Cassie the most. "T-Toko, no! You have to come back to school! It was self-defense! You won't get in trouble for-"

"I'm not leaving because I don't want to deal with the trouble, Cassie."

Her friend quieted, looking near tears. "But…"

"I'll see you at work later."

Toko turned, grabbing each of the twin's hands. "We're going home."

Jasdero smiled weakly. "Okay."

Cassie could only stare on, defeated, as the three walked away.

* * *

_Dammit…_

_How dare she do this to me? Stupid bitch…_

_I'm going to kill her… All of them._

I stood up shakily, wiping off some of the blood.

"Cain! Are you okay?" my little brother asked, but I quickly brushed him off.

"Those monsters are going to die…" I whispered, drawing a small knife from my pocket. This would do well enough.

_Time to rid the town of monsters again, just like my father did._

* * *

-gasp- What is it with me and my love for cliffhangers?

It seems as though I've made another OC for the story. Cain. I may or may not keep him in the main story line. I'll probably describe him more and stuff next chapter.

So, until then!

Oh, and what is it with me and my weird naming sense for these chapters? This one is French, and it means 'The Blue Prince'. (Though I hope I'm not wrong, but I'm 99 percent sure I'm not, so...)


	21. Broken

Say hello to chapter 21! Wow, this story has gone so far.

Remember, from now on, chapters will be put up on Sundays.

**Disclaimer:** Oh how I wish DGM was mine, but it's not...

* * *

The sun hung in the cloudless sky, its harsh light touching the forest floor in little patches. Though she had started out as the one leading them away, Toko found that it was the twins who were leading her now.

Neither spoke. Neither did she. She'd been caught. They'd found out another secret she was keeping from them. Another thing that made her seem weak.

She was weak after all…

"Guys…" she eventually spoke up, glancing from one to the other uncertainly.

Debitto took a breath, and released it slowly. Was he angry? Toko braced herself, waiting for him to start yelling…

"Why didn't you tell us?" his voice was softer then she had expected it to be. He turned to the side to look at her, and she in turn, turned away.

"You didn't need to know."

"What the hell makes you think that?" his voice was harsher now, but not angry. Still, Toko refused to look at him.

"If I told you, it'd make me seem…"

Jasdero spoke now. "You're not weak, Toko." he said quietly. The two stopped walking, forcing her to stop as well. She bit her lip, staring at the ground.

"Exactly." Debitto said, "That you've had to deal with this… And it's all our fault… We're so sorry…" his hands clenched into fists. "Those stupid humans…" he growled, making Toko finally look at him.

"You talk like you're not human yourself." she said quietly. To her right, Jasdero stiffened. This didn't go unnoticed by her.

"I need you guys to tell me everything." She said, looking first at Jasdero, then at Debitto. Both seemed frozen.

"Why did you come back?"

Debitto blinked, looking slightly relieved. Obviously, this was something he could answer.

"We're looking for something." he said. "We planned on being quick about it, but…" he trailed off, then shrugged. "We got side tracked."

"What is it you're looking for?" Toko asked. This question wasn't met as well as the first.

"Ah, well… we can't really… tell you." Debitto said slowly, and seemed to shrink back slightly, expecting an angry reply. Toko only sighed.

"Are you ever going to tell me where you've been gone all this time? Why you didn't…" her voice seemed to catch in her throat, but she forced the rest out, "Why you didn't come back?"

Jasdero's arms wrapped around her, and she didn't flinch away. "We're sorry Toko… If we knew that you… that things were so bad here, we would have come back sooner…" he said, burying his face into her hair.

"You still haven't told me where you were…"

"We're sorry Toko… We can't tell you that either…" Jasdero murmured.

That was it. She pulled away from him, out of his grasp, and took a few steps back from them.

"Why? Why do you have to hide things from me? Why do you lie to me? What's so secret that you can't tell me? Why-"

Debitto took a step forward and pulled her into his chest, his arms wrapping around her now. How easily she switched from one to the other.

"Toko, if we told you, it would be so much worse. You're a lot safer not knowing." He said.

"Debi…" Jasdero said nervously.

"Why would it be-"

He cut her off again. "Please, just accept that we can't tell you." One of his hands ran slowly through her hair. "So please stop crying…"

"I'm not-" she started to say, then stopped. Shit, she was. She blinked trying to stop them from coming.

"What are you doing that would be dangerous if I knew?"

Debitto laughed, though it wasn't cheery. "We can't tell you, remember?"

Toko sniffled, rubbing her eyes. "You're an idiot."

"Yeah, well-"

Debitto suddenly froze, his eyes wide and his arms locked around Toko. She looked over to Jasdero, and saw that he wore the same expression Debitto did.

"So, this is where the freaks went." A smooth voice startled Toko, and she squirmed in Debitto's grasp to see behind her.

Cain took a few slow, easygoing steps towards them, moving the small knife from one hand to the other. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything." He said, snickering.

"Dero, get Toko away from here." Debittosaid slowly, loosening his hold on the girl. She gave him a confused look.

"W-what are you going to-"

"I'm gonna kill him, that's what." Debitto gave a low snarl, his eyes locked on the boy in front of him, who was laughing now.

Toko's eyes were wide with alarm. "Debitto, no! You can't _kill_ him! You can't fight him! I don't want you to get hurt! What if he…" she gave the knife a terrified glance, refusing to imagine the image of it stuck into Debitto's chest.

Without warning, Debitto pushed her away, towards Jasdero, who caught her. His brother gave him a scared look.

"Debi, you can't! If Dero leaves, then you can't use-"

"I'll kill him without using _that_." Debitto growled. "I don't need a weapon to kill a pathetic kid like this."

"Brave words coming from someone who's unarmed." Cain sneered.

"Debitto, no!" Toko yelled, struggling against Jasdero's hold on her in vain. "You can't!"

"Dero, get her away, now!"

Before she could react, Jasdero had thrown her over his shoulder and was sprinting away. Debitto faced the boy.

"You're gonna wish you hadn't done this, human."

"And I'm gonna make you eat those words, monster."

* * *

"Jasdero, no, put me down!" Toko screamed. The scenery went past them quickly as the boy ran. The only reason she wasn't struggling more was that she was afraid the boy would drop her if she did.

"Jasdero, please-"

"I don't like this any more than you do!" Jasdero said, slowing down until he was walking. He carefully set Toko down, and grabbed her arm as she turned and tried to run back.

"Jasdero-"

"Debitto can handle this. H-he… He'll be fine."

"How can you know that? He has nothing to defend himself with!" Toko yelled, beating her fists weakly against Jasdero's chest. She clung to his vest, pressing her forehead against his chest, forcing tears back again.

"If… if anything happens to him…"

"I know… Of course I do. He's my brother. But we've learned how to fight well enough while we've been gone. He'll be fine." Jasdero reassured her, hugging her tight.

"I wish you two would at least tell me what's going on…" Toko said quietly, calming down a bit. She felt Jasdero stiffen. He seemed more nervous about discussing it than Debitto did.

"Toko… Dero hates lying to you… So much…" he said slowly, "But… but if you knew…"

Toko pulled away, looking her friend in the eyes. "Knew what? Please, please tell me. I want to know. I _have_ to. It's torture not knowing!" she pleaded.

"If we told you… You'd hate us…" Jasdero said quietly, looking away. He took a step back. Toko took a step forward.

"Dero, I could never hate you. Neither of you." she said softly, taking his hand and pulling him over to a fallen tree, where she made him sit down with her.

She rested her head on his shoulder, startling him. "B-but you would hate us! For sure!" he said quickly.

Toko sighed, closing her eyes. "No. You may be irritating, annoying, and downright rude at times, but you're still the best friends I've ever had."

Jasdero blinked. "W-what about Cassie?"

Toko laughed softly. "That's different. She's more like a sister than a friend."

There was a pause, then Toko spoke again.

"You know what dream I told you about, the first morning you came back? With the snake monster?" she asked. There was a sharp intake of breath from Jasdero.

"Yes."

"It wasn't a dream, was it?"

There was silence from her friend.

"I don't know how that nightmare could be real… But I just know that it was. Which means you and Debitto saved me from that thing." She went on.

"I-it was a dream, Toko…"

"Why are you still lying?" Toko's anger suddenly flared up, and she pulled away from him. "I _know_ it was real! So why do you keep lying about it?"

"Because I love you!"

Immediately, his hands flew to his mouth, and his eyes widened.

There was a sharp intake of breath from Toko. "W-what?"

"N-no, Dero didn't mean to… It's not… I mean-"

"Since when?"

He stopped, removing his hands from his mouth, and took a shaky breath. "Since… since we were little…"

"You mean… back then…"

"Dero… Dero has always loved you… That's why-" he stopped, then started again, "That's why I have to keep lying. To protect you."

"You… love… me?" she said quietly.

She suddenly jumped up, and took a few steps backwards. Jasdero's eyes widened in alarm. "Toko?"

"No! I don't get any of this! Why… I don't understand!"

Jasdero stood up, looking frightened now. "No… Dero didn't mean to say that…"

"But you did! Why… Why me?" Toko asked, near hysterics now. It was all too much. All of this. Nothing made sense anymore.

His lips pressed against hers, and her eyes widened. When had he come so close? He'd been feet away from her seconds before, and he had moved so quickly that she hadn't even seen it.

It was such a quick exchange, and barely lasted a second. But it was so shocking that it seemed to last for ages. He pulled away, his eyes clouded by some hidden emotion.

"I'm so sorry, Toko…" he whispered, and wrapped his arms around her.

* * *

"I'm going to kill you, monster." The boy hissed, holding the knife up to face the black haired boy. Debitto seemed uninterested in the weapon.

"If you're going to fight, can you just get on with it instead of repeating over and over again that you're going to kill me?" he said, sounding bored. With Toko gone, he didn't have to worry about anything. As long as he killed the kid so he couldn't spill the secret himself.

Cain glared, baring his teeth. "You're gonna regret this then."

With a rather loud yell, he ran towards Debitto, jabbing the knife out in front of him. Debitto sighed, and side stepped him, his speed faster than a normal human's. Cain whirled to the side, eyes wide.

"What the hell?!"

"You wanted to deal with the monster. You might as well be committing suicide right now."

Cain's eyes fell on the crosses on Debitto's forehead. "H-how… But before…"

"Oh, come on. I'm a monster, remember? A monster has to have a disguise."

"Y-you really are a monster!" Cain shouted, backing up. No, he hadn't been expecting this. He didn't want this. That horrible, bloodthirsty look in those golden eyes.

He was going to die. No, no, he didn't want to die!

"No!" he shouted, turning to run. Pointless. Debitto easily caught him by the neck, making the boy scream. The knife still rested in his hand.

"Oh, come on, this was too easy. Not fun at all." Debitto said, faking a yawn as he squeezed the life out of the boy. Best not make it bloody, even though he wanted it that way. If he came back covered in blood, Toko wouldn't like that.

Toko…

"Although I don't like you calling me and my brother monsters, I'm mostly doing this for her." he said, ignoring the boy's gagging as he choked. "For threatening to hurt her. For calling her a monster. Don't get her mixed up with us."

A sharp pain in his side made him release his hold on the boy. He doubled over, his hand coming to his side. He looked down, freezing when he was his own blood.

Cain stood, gasping and panting, over him, the bloody knife in hand.

"You stupid human…" Debitto hissed through the pain. Time to be serious. It took him literally two seconds to jump up and snap his neck with a sickening sound. The boy collapsed to the ground, eyes still side with fear, even in his death.

Debitto took a few steps backwards, away from the body. Shit. He'd actually gotten wounded. It wasn't that bad though. Just a cut on his side. Still, it was bleeding a bit. He sighed.

Without even glancing back at the dead boy, he started making his way back to Toko's house.

* * *

Ha! Dero gets her first kiss! (I'm not counting dream kisses.) I was planning on keeping Cain around, but decided not to at the last minute. May the stupid bastard rest in hell.

Ahh, twenty-one chapters and Toko still hasn't found out about them being Noah. Wow.


	22. Always

School starts on Tuesday, so I can no longer guarantee that the chapters will come out a week at a time. But I'm going to try my hardest to keep them coming out regularly!

Oh, and I don't know about you, but I'm really wanting Hoshino to bring back the Noah in DGM. How many chapters has it been since she introduced Sherrill? Too many. -sigh-

**Disclaimer**: No own.

* * *

Debitto quietly opened the door to Toko's house, peeking inside. Using his free hand that wasn't clutching his side, he closed the door behind him, walking in.

"Jasdero? Toko? Are you guys here?" he called, glancing around.

A few moments past, then Toko emerged from her room, her eyes wide.

"Debitto!" she cried, rushing over and flinging her arms around him. This would have pleased him to no end if it hadn't hurt like hell.

"Ow, ow!" he winced, pushing her away slightly, both hands flying to his side after he did so. That was when she saw the blood.

"No…" her voice was quiet, barely above a whisper, but he still heard the horror in it.

"It's not as bad as it looks." Debitto quickly assured her. "But it would be nice to get it taken care of… Hey, where's Dero?"

Before she answered, she pulled him over to the couch, earning a few more gasps of pain from him. He sat down, and she lifted up his shirt, examining the cut.

Debitto sat silent through the pain. He'd had worse. And he didn't want her worrying more than she already was. She already looked horror struck.

"Toko-"

"You idiot…" she whispered, cutting him off. "Why did you have to do that?"

"It was either him or us."

"You really think he was going to try and-"

"Yes, I do!"

That shut her up. She bit her lip, looking like she wanted to cry. Without warning, she stood up, and ran to the kitchen, where she started rummaging around through drawers and cabinets. Eventually, she came back with a towel and… a needle and thread.

Debitto stared at the last pair of objects.

"No. Hell no."

"What do you suppose I do then?"

Debitto glared at her now. "Well, definitely not stitch me up like a pair of torn jeans!"

Toko silenced him by pushing the towel against the cut, making Debitto yelp in pain and grab her wrist.

"Dammit, give me some warning before you-"

"Debi? Are you okay?" Jasdero's voice called from another room, and his footsteps soon followed, until his face poked around the corner, staring with worry at the two. Debitto looked relieved.

"Thank God, Dero, you can try and convince her that what she wants to do is a stupid mistake." he said, then blinked, noticing the look on Toko's face.

She had looked up as Jasdero entered the room, but her gaze had quickly fallen back to Debitto's wound. She was biting her lip, hard, and she looked distressed. He would have asked what had happened if she hadn't been pushing on the towel so hard.

"What does she want to do?" Jasdero asked, almost mumbling the question. Clearly, something had happened between them.

"What happened with you two?" he asked, and hissed as the pressure against his side increased again.

Jasdero ignored his question. "What is she doing?"

"Dammit, she wants to sew me up herself, alright?"

Jasdero frowned. "Toko…"

"Shut it." her voice was harsh, making Jasdero flinch.

"Please, Toko…" he didn't sound like he was talking about Debitto's wound anymore. Debitto glanced between the two.

"Okay, that's it. Something happened between you two, and I want to know what it was."

"No!" Toko yelled letting go of the towel and stepping away. "I don't have to tell you anything!"

Jasdero looked desperate now. "Toko, I'm so sorry-"

"No, you're not! Just leave me alone!"

The front door slammed behind her.

* * *

"What did you do to her?"

"Nothing…"

"Like I believe that."

"It's not like it's the first time…"

"To do _what_?"

"… kiss her."

"What the hell?!"

"I couldn't help it! She… she was so upset, and then… I-I just…" the blond fell silent, staring at the floor while his brother tended to his wound.

"You're such an idiot…" Debitto said with a sigh, wincing a bit. At least the bleeding had stopped.

"I know…" Jasdero said miserably.

"But what do you mean by it not being the first time?"

"We… as Jasdebi…"

"Oh, that doesn't count…"

The two fell silent. Debitto had been quick to toss the needle and thread to the side. Even the sight of it made him nervous.

Eventually, Jasdero sighed. "Debi, what should I do? She hates me…"

"She doesn't hate you. No one could hate you. It's impossible." Debitto mumbled, leaning back. "I guess you should just go talk to her or something…"

"But she-"

"It's not gonna get any better if you don't."

Another sigh. "You're probably right…"

"Of course I'm right. Now get going."

Jasdero gave him a weak smile. "Thanks, Debi. Even though you like her too… You're not mad at what Dero did?"

Debitto snorted. "No. Besides, is there any rule that says we can't _both_ have her?"

Jasdero frowned. "Maybe…" he crossed the room to the door, turning around as he opened it. "Debi will be okay?"

"Fine. Oh, and be careful she doesn't push you into the lake."

A quiet laugh sounded right before the door closed for the second time that night.

* * *

"Toko?"

Toko jumped up from where she had been sitting, her back against a tree, turned away from the house. She hadn't heard Jasdero approach her.

"Wh-what do you want?" she asked, shrinking away from his advancing form. He seemed to notice this, and stopped. He looked absolutely miserable.

"Well?" she asked when he remained silent.

"Dero is sorry…"

"Yeah, well, you already said that, didn't you? Can't you just… leave me alone?" she mumbled the last part, lowering her head to stare at the ground.

"B-but I really am… I mean it, I'm so sorry…"

Toko looked up, alarmed. It sounded like he was crying.

"Jasdero?" she took an uncertain step forward.

"Do you hate me?" he asked, sniffling a bit.

Her eyes widened. "No, Jasdero, I don't… I would never… I just…" Dammit, why didn't she know what to say? She'd made him so miserable…

Why was she so heartless?

"Oh Dero, I'm the one who should be sorry…" she found herself saying, her steps towards him no longer uncertain. It was impossible to stay mad at him. "I was just so… I guess I was really shocked. I didn't know… how to react or anything."

Jasdero stayed put until she was right in front of him. He quickly wiped away forming tears. "Dero is so terrible though… For coming here, annoying you, getting you in trouble… And on top of that, telling you that…"

He nearly jumped when Toko's arms wrapped around him in a hug.

"Jasdero, you don't know the meaning of terrible. You're the farthest thing from it." she whispered, trying and failing to lighten the mood with a laugh.

"Toko… really doesn't hate Dero?"

She shook her head. "I was so surprised… No one has ever… told me anything like that."

Jasdero was silent for a moment.

"Does Toko love us?"

Toko's breathing seemed to stop.

She stepped away, her eyes lowered to the ground. A question like that… How could she answer?

"No, Toko, I'm sorry! That was stupid of Dero to-"

"I do… love you."

His words vanished into silence.

"I love you two… like brothers. Like best friends. But if there was anything more…"

His heart sank.

"I honestly wouldn't really know what it felt like."

A quick breath. Maybe there was a bit of hope after all.

"But I think I might be beginning to understand what it really feels like to… to love someone. Maybe. It something so completely new for me… It's scary, and confusing…" she went on, refusing to look at him.

Jasdero blinked, his heart light. "Toko may… love us after all?"

"Oh Dero…"

Not good words…

Jasdero swallowed hard, turning away. Toko hugged him again, but earned no response.

"Dero?"

"Who… who is it?"

Toko bit her lip. "I… don't…"

"What's his name?"

She sighed, closing her eyes.

"It's a secret." she whispered.

"Oh…"

Silence.

"But I can't deny… That I do love you and Debitto… Just… I don't think it's in the way you want me to."

"What if it is?" he sounded desperate now.

"If it is… I wouldn't know."

His arms wrapped around her, finally responding to her hug.

"But you know… I am… So very happy."

Jasdero blinked. "Huh?"

"I never had any siblings, so there was none to love and look out for me… Since my father left, it's hard to remember what a good parent was like… And since you left, I felt very alone… That's why I'm so happy… Happier than I've ever been, now that you're back. Even if it's only for a little while and you'll have to leave again, just knowing that you're out there, that there's someone who thinks and cares about me... It makes me so, so happy…"

Jasdero looked off into the distance. "Even if we leave, you're okay with that?"

Toko took a shaky breath. "If you have to leave… Then I'm still just grateful to know that you're alive. That you could come back."

He sighed, and hugged her tighter. "Of course we'll come back… After all of this, how could we not?" he paused, thinking. "I think… I think I know what we have to do for Debi."

Toko looked up at him, suddenly worried again. "What?"

"Come on, let's get back first…"

Toko nodded. "Ah, okay…"

"Hey, Toko?"

"Hm?"

"Dero really is sorry…"

She only smiled and took his hand.

* * *

"How long will you be gone then?"

"Just a day. It won't take that long to patch me up." Debitto answered the depressed girl. Damn, she looked so sad to hear that they were leaving, only for a day.

They were going back home, where he could get sewed up and all that crap. He'd stay shorter, but Jasdero insisted that he rest a bit. Of course, this was all his fault for being so careless. Idiot.

"When are you leaving then?"

"In the morning. We'll be gone before you wake up."

Toko frowned. "Then I'll be sure to wake up early."

Debitto sighed. So stubborn. Toko stood up.

"Well, if I'm getting up early, then I guess I'd better get some sleep. You're sure you're okay for now, Debitto?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Honestly, it's just a stupid scratch…"

"Enough to worry over. I'm going to bed then. Wake me up before you go, okay?"

Debitto sighed, nodding. She sounded so cheerful now. Was it just an act? Jasdero seemed a bit depressed. He'd barely said a word since they'd come back. He'd have to ask him about it when they got back home.

Toko stood up from the couch, yawning. "See you tomorrow then."

"Yeah, good night, Toko."

* * *

It's sleep time for me too. Until the next chapter then!

Ah, also...

Do you think Jasdebi are still in character? Because I worry about that a lot.


	23. Stop, Go

Ugh, first week of school. Chaotic. I really want to keep these chapters going regularly, but I just may not be able to. I haven't even finished my homework yet and it's tome to bed. ;A;

Anyway, I hope this is enjoyed.

Disclaimer: Now own. Wish I own. But still no own.

* * *

They were gone before she woke up. Just like they'd said they would be.

Toko stood out in the cool morning air, mist covering the water of the lake and the weak morning sun just beginning to show over the horizon. The wind blew the trees softly, sprinkling the water from the small storm the night before onto her.

The grass was wet beneath her feet, and some of it stuck there as she walked back inside the house. Everything felt so empty now. Why was that? They had only been there for a few days, but now that they were gone, it felt like they had been here much longer. Surely it shouldn't hurt this much, especially since she had known they would be going.

She sat down on the couch with a sigh, leaning over to pick the wet pieces of grass off of her feet. The only thing comforting was that she knew they would be coming back.

They would, right?

Another sigh. She'd have to trust them on this.

If they didn't come back, she was never going to forgive them.

Cassie came to visit sometime after school must have ended, but Toko didn't want to talk to her. She barely paid attention as her friend ranted on of student and teacher reactions to her walking out. Apparently someone would be coming over to talk to her the next day, but that only put Toko in higher spirits.

They would be back by then.

Then those two would end up getting her even deeper in trouble. She'd get angry and maybe even cry a bit. They'd say they were sorry and things would go on like that, a routine. A tiring one, and she always seemed angry.

But the truth was, she really loved it all.

Cassie talked for hours without letting Toko say a word, but as it got darker, Toko had to get her to go with the excuse of her being tired. Even then, her talkative friend took another ten minutes to say her goodbye, and by the time she was gone, Toko really was exhausted.

Maybe when she woke up, they'd be back. She'd make sure to give them a big smile and maybe even a hug for each of them. It was probably time that she started being nicer to them. They were her best friends after all.

She sighed into her pillow as she laid her head in the place of her dreams. Sleep would soon follow, and in the morning…

She'd be able to smile again.

* * *

He wanted to sleep, but he still had to look for the damn Innocence.

He also wanted to get back to Toko, but he couldn't even do that. So here he was, stuck with those three akuma from before, roaming around the town aimlessly.

There was nothing to find! There probably wasn't anything here at all! And the stupid machines wouldn't give up. The small girl was the only one who showed any want to quit. She seemed to be siding with him since he'd save her from the humans.

The young male seemed to be the problem. He was very intent on following every order from the Earl in a very exact manner, and didn't seem to like taking orders from Jasdebi. The older male listened to him too.

If he could just kill the stupid thing…

"Noah-sama, it is as we said before." the young man spoke. Jasdebi sent him a glare that would have even the other Noah backing away. "There is no Innocence out here in the open. Surely it must be in one of these houses, with the humans. I say it is time to burn this village and-"

He dodged the hair that had shot out towards him. In the darkness, Jasdebi could almost make out the smug look on his face. He'd been expecting it.

"Really, master, I am only serving you. If you care for these humans so much, perhaps you are not fit for serving our Lord, the Earl."

"Shut up, you stupid demon! I know what I'm doing!" Jasdebi snarled, taking a few steps towards the akuma, which in turn took an equal amount of steps back.

"We do as I say! Is that clear?" he went on, looking at each of the three for a few seconds. The only one who nodded was the girl.

"We do as the Earl says, Noah-sama." the young akuma male said with a rather nasty grin.

"Do you _want _me to kill you?!"

"Master, you should not speak so loud…" the girl said nervously, looking around as if humans were going to jump from the walls themselves and magically find some way to kill them. Jasdebi only snorted.

"I knew it was a terrible idea to work with you things…"

"No idea of the Earl's is terrible-"

"Oh just shut up already about the fatass!" Jasdebi whirled, snarling at the young male, who stared at him indifferently.

His hands curled into fists. It would be so easy to blow that smug look right off of his face. So simple to burn him alive. So wonderful to rip him, limb from limp, until all that was left was blood and his soul's container.

What held him back?

He turned, breathing hard. That was it. He couldn't work with these things without killing them, obviously.

"Just do whatever you want." he hissed quietly. The akuma smiled in triumphant victory.

"Yes, master. You may go and rest. We will take care of things here."

"Yeah, whatever…" Jasdebi relaxed his hand, letting it rest limply at his side.

He was too tired to deal with this now. He'd kill them tomorrow. For now, he needed rest. He needed to see her.

Tomorrow. He'd see her tomorrow, as Debitto and Jasdero. He'd already gotten too close to her like this. She'd seen him too many times to think he was some dream.

And though it hurt him, he knew that the less she knew about him, the better. He felt the same way as the twins; they were him, and he was them. But they were the ones that got to see her, not him. All he had were memories from them, and the sleeping form of her. And maybe a kiss or two. That was the only thing he had that they didn't.

But it was inevitable. Things couldn't go on like that forever.

Disaster would strike with the rising of flames, the crumbling of buildings, and the cries of humans.

* * *

"Wake up."

Debitto groaned.

"Seriously, you need to get up, now."

"Ugh… go away…"

A rough hand shook him, and Debitto opened his eyes, and was surprised to see… Tyki.

"What the hell do you want?" the teen growled, looking around. It was still dark. Way too dark to be morning.

"You need to get up, and you need to get her out of here." Tyki said quickly. He sounded…

Pretty damn serious.

Debitto looked confused. "Her? You mean Toko? Why, what's wrong?" he asked, suddenly alarmed.

And for good reason, considering the next words that Tyki spoke.

"Time's up."

Debitto's eyes widened, and he jumped off of the couch. "What? But… you don't mean… But it hasn't been a week yet! The Earl said-"

"The Earl thinks you two can't get the job done. He found out about the human hurting you, Debitto. Pretty stupid move, coming back. Now he's sending akuma to do the job instead of you two."

Debitto ran to the window; and the sight that awaited him made his eyes widen in horror.

From the direction of the town, smoke was rising; lots of it. The town glowed red and orange with flames, and had he been outside, the screams of dying humans would have met his ears. His stomach dropped.

"No…"

The teen ran back over to the couch and quickly shook his brother awake.

"Dero, get up. You need to get up!"

Jasdero opened his eyes to peer sleepily at his brother. "What, Debi?"

"Akuma!"

That single word seemed to instantly awaken the blond, and he sat up.

"Here?"

"Here! We need to get Toko out before…"

Neither wanted that sentence finished.

Debitto turned around. "Tyki!" he stopped. The man was nowhere to be seen. He had already left.

Jasdero ran down the hall to Toko's bedroom, and threw open the door. The noise was loud enough to awaken the sleeping girl, and she stared at Jasdero, half sitting up in bed.

"Huh? Jasdero! You're back!" How happy she sounded. That wouldn't last long.

"Sorry, Toko." Jasdero said quickly, and ran to the side of her bed. Before she could protest, he had grabbed her by the arm and pulled her out of bed.

"What are you doing? Let go!" she yelled franticly, trying to pull out of his grasp. She struggled as he pulled her into the front room, where Debitto awaited. Jasdero finally released her, and she backed up a bit, away from them.

"W-what's going on? What are you doing?" she asked as she stared at the two, her eyes wide with shock and perhaps fear.

Then she noticed.

The golden eyes. The grey skin.

The crosses on their foreheads.

"What…"

Debitto took a step towards her, and she took a step back, making him stop.

"Toko, we can't explain right now. Please believe us, we'll explain later. But we need to get you out of here, before-"

"What are you?"

He stopped. "What?"

"What are you two? I've ignored it this whole time, how different you are, but I just can't anymore! What are you two?" she suddenly screamed, staring at them through eyes that were quickly filling with tears. The twins glanced at each other, each as speechless as the other.

This wasn't the happy reunion they had wanted. This wasn't the friendly conversation any of them had been expecting as they had seen each other again.

"Toko… There's nothing different-" Debitto started, taking another step forward.

"Stop it!" the girl screamed. "I don't want to hear any more lies! I want the truth! You owe me that!" a sob escaped her. "Please…"

"Toko…" Debitto started quietly, stepping towards her. This was hard. So hard on him. On both of them.

Another step back from her. "Don't-"

Two quick strides, and his arms were wrapped around her, pulling her into his chest. She instantly went silent, eyes wide.

"Please don't be afraid…" Debitto begged, whispering into her ear. "Please…"

Another sob escaped the girl, and she buried her face into his shoulder, letting the tears flow freely.

"What… are you?" she asked again, between the sobbing, her voice slightly muffled. "Are you even… human?"

Pain flashed through Debitto eyes, but only Jasdero saw; and his own eyes reflected the same feeling.

"Yes…" Debitto whispered. "We are…"

"Then what-"

"Please, we'll explain later. But we need to get you out of here. If we don't, you'll be killed."

Toko pulled away slightly, looking at his face, into his eyes. "Killed? Why? By who?" she asked in a whisper, fear evident in her voice.

Debitto's hand moved up to her face, and he wiped away her tears softly. "Not who. You remember the first day we came back?"

The girl nodded. Debitto continued.

"Remember how you fainted the night before that, and we brought you to your house?"

A sharp intake of breath from her.

"That wasn't a dream was it?"

Debitto shook his head.

"Then… back then… that thing…"

"It was an akuma."

"You saved my life…"

"Yeah…" Debitto leaned closer, touching his forehead to hers. "And we're going to save you from them again."

* * *

UGH FINALLY I GOT TO THIS PART. I've had it written out for so long! -flail- CLIMAX. Really, I'm happy I finally made it this far!

Now I kill you with suspense! -insert evil laughter here- :D

Until next week!


	24. The Secrets that We Kept

Sorry this is a day late. Writers block plus school only adds to bad things.

There may not be a chapter next week. Not sure. My grandparents are coming over, and it's been three years since I've seen them, so my parents are making sure that we spend every waking second with them. I am not happy about this, but I can't help it. ;;

Also, chapters may be slightly irregular from now on, with school and all. (Lol I keep saying that I'll put them out Sunday. Sorry I keep lying to you.)

**Disclaimer:**No ownage.

* * *

"We're going, getting you away from here."

_Words lost their meaning._

"It's too dangerous to stay."

_What was going on?_

"Come on, stop standing there, we have to go now!"

Debitto's voice urged her on, but Toko found herself frozen, both in body and in mind. From the window, the orange lightly burning from the town glowed, but what did it really mean? What did this all mean?

Debitto tried a different approach. He grabbed onto her arm, pulling her towards the door, but Toko instinctively pulled back. She broke away from him, her mind still working slowly. Damn human mind, taking too long to process the information that…

_That…_

"Cassie…"

Debitto blinked. "What?"

Toko's mind had finally caught up.

"Cassie, Cassie lives in town! She's still back there!" her voice came out in a panicked whisper, her eyes wide with horror. Cassie, all those people back in town…

"I have to go-"

"_Don't be stupid!_"

Debitto's harsh snarl startled her, and she took a few more steps back out of real fear. He looked furious, and whether his anger was directed at her or the whole situation, she wasn't sure.

"We don't have time to go back, okay? Don't be stupid! We have to get you out _now_!"

Tears sprung up In Toko's eyes. "We can't just leave-"

"Yes, we _can_!"

"But… but before, when you saved me from the… akuma. You killed it, right? Can't you kill them again?" she was pleading with him now. She glanced at Jasdero, but he seemed just as determined as Debitto.

She turned back to Debitto to see him shaking his head.

"Too many. We probably wouldn't be able to get them all while still protecting you. Plus, we'd-" he stopped. He had been about to say that they'd get in trouble with the Earl, but perhaps that wasn't the best thing to say. Better to leave everything about the Earl out of this. He blinked, noticeing a new look of determination on Toko's face.

He didn't like it.

The girl composed herself a bit, taking a few deep breaths. She was handling this very well, actually. Of course, she barely knew anything at the moment.

"If we're going to get away from here, shouldn't we change into more suitable clothes then?" she asked, already taking a half step backwards towards her room. Good. Maybe she understood that they needed to hurry.

"Yeah, sure. Make it quick, there's not much time. Dero and I will grab anything else we might need." Debitto said, turning to his brother, who was watching Toko. "C'mon."

Leaving Toko, who ran into her room and nearly slammed the door behind her, the two found the backpacks of random crap that they'd brought when they first decided to stay there for the week. Money, clothes, that was about all they would need. They couldn't take her back to the Noah mansion; hell no, that would be worse than staying here.

"Toko?"

Debitto looked up, noticing Jasdero's absence. His voice had come from down the hall. Toko's room. He peeked his head around the corner to see his brother standing in front of Toko's still closed door.

"Toko, we need to leave, hii." The blond said nervously. Debitto noticed the gun in his hands, and how he was fiddling with it. "Really, if we don't leave soon…"

"Toko, open up, bitch!" Debitto yelled, kicking the door. This was long enough for her to change, right? He tried to doorknob, but found it locked.

Why was it…

_Oh shit._

"Dero, white bomb." his voice was barely above a whisper.

"Hii?"

"White bomb, _now_!" he suddenly yelled, pointing his gun at the door.

Jasdero let out a surprised 'hii' and pointed his own gun at the door. A quick flash of white, and there was an empty doorway in front of them.

And from across the room, an open window.

_Stupid bitch._

* * *

The wind was blowing hard, much harder than usual. Maybe another storm was coming. Good, they would need the rain to douse the fire.

The air was warm and humid, making Toko grateful that she had slipped on some shorts and a short sleeved shirt before she had run out. She'd chosen this clothing because there were no loose parts that 

would easily catch on fire. Plus, with them both being dark colors, she could slip through the shadows hopefully unnoticed by the monsters.

Akuma. Demons. Why did the two know about them? More like, why were the two able to destroy such creatures? What did that make them? Even worse monsters?

No, they weren't monsters…

Toko paused at the edge of town. Out here, the glow of the fire was much stronger, and the smoke hung in the air, wafting its scent everywhere. The destruction hadn't come this far yet.

If she could just get to the center without being noticed… That was where Cassie would be.

_If she wasn't already…_

A shake of her head. Cassie was fine. She had to believe that.

And now, into the madness…

* * *

_Too much._

_This was too much._

There was nothing left. No people. Not even bodies. Just dust. She'd seen them die. Seen them fall away, crumble, broken.

_This was all too much._

She couldn't see. Couldn't breathe. The smoke and the strange gas released from the crumbling bodies killed her senses. She couldn't go any further.

But Cassie…

"Eh? I missed one?"

No…

"Hm. How silly of me to miss one. Sneaky little thing, aren't you?" the voice went on. Something knelt down beside her, grabbed her by her chin, forced her to look up. A face hidden by what looked like a medieval knight's helmet, jagged teeth forming a grin. Things were going black. But the presence of this monster made her struggle more.

She slapped the thing's hand away and crawled a few steps back, panting. She could feel the bloodlust, like an actually weight. It pushed down on her like gravity, never wavering, and only seeming to grow stronger.

"Hm, guess that's it then." The thing said, raising a hand.

"Wait!"

Toko could have cried with happiness.

* * *

The level three stopped, its hand still raised above the girl.

"Ah, Noah-samas, wonderful of you to join us. I take it you have some business with this human?" it asked, tilting its ugly head to the side.

Debitto, breathing hard, both from running here and from rage, nodded. "Yeah. Give her to us."

The akuma picked the girl up by her arm, and the urge to kill the thing nearly overwhelmed the Noah. Not just him, but Jasdero too. He could see his brother quivering with rage beside him.

He reached out, letting the akuma drop Toko into his arms, where she clung weakly to his shirt, breathing hard. They had to get her out of here, fast, or she would die.

"You can leave now." Debitto told the thing. It gave a short nod, grinning at the weak human, and disappeared into the shadows. Debitto let out the sigh he'd been holding in.

"De… Debi… Jas…"

"It's okay, we'll get you away from here." He whispered, stroking her hair.

"Cass… Cassie…"

The twins exchanged a quick look, internally debating what to do. Would she ever forgive them if they left her friend to her death? Maybe they would actually be able to save the other girl. After all, the akuma had easily given her up to them.

"Alright, you win. We'll save your friend. But we're taking you somewhere safe first." Debitto said slowly.

"No… I'm coming… with you…"

"You're gonna die, stupid."

"I'm just fine."

"You don't look fine." Jasdero joined in.

"Oh, shut up!" had the situation not been so serious, Debitto would have laughed. But there was no time for laughing. He turned to his brother.

"What should we do then?" he asked. It looked like Toko wasn't going to let them leave her, so they'd have to take her _with_ them…

"What if we…" Jasdero started, then stopped, looking nervous.

"What if we _what_?"

Jasdero mumbled something, looking away.

"_What_?"

"We could… combine." Jasdero said again, louder and clearer this time.

"_What?!_"

Toko blinked, looking confused. "_Combine_?"

"No! No way, we're not doing that." Debitto flat out refused. The thought of Toko knowing about that…

"Wait, what do you mean, combine?" Toko asked again.

"But we're stronger and faster like that! We'd definitely be able to keep her safe!" Jasdero said, sounding a little angry. He didn't like the idea of Toko knowing either, but if that was what it took to keep her safe, then it was worth it.

"But Dero…"

"What are you two talking about?!" Toko yelled, frustrated now.

The twins looked at each other for a moment, and then simultaneously turned to look at Toko.

"Do we really have to?" Debitto asked.

"You know we need to…"

"I guess so…"

"Stop ignoring me!"

"Sorry ,Toko. Don't get too freaked out, okay?" Debitto pleaded, raising his gun to point at Jasdero's head, while Jasdero did the same to him.

Her eyes widened. "Wh-what are you guys doing?"

They shot before they answered.

* * *

One second she had been clutching Debitto's jacket, and then it was smoke through her fingers.

They were gone. They had shot each other. And now she was nearly blinded by the smoke.

What was a girl to do but scream?

"Jasdero! Debitto!" she yelled, freaking out despite Debitto telling her not to. They had shot each other, _shot each other_… There was no _not freaking out_ after that.

"Jas-"

"Right here, stop screaming. You'll attract akuma if you keep going on like that." Simultaneous voices spoke from behind her.

"You're alri-!" she stopped as she whipped her head around. She stared for a moment, eyes wide.

_She knew him._

"Y-you?" she asked in a whisper.

Jasdebi sighed. "Yeah, me."

* * *

I have one thing to say; DUN DUN DUN! -dramatic music-


	25. Walk Without the Sun

Sorry for the two week delay. But I have to admit that it was a nice break for me. I got time to actually think about the plot and stuff.

Okay, well I don't have much to say today. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Meaning, I do not claim. C:

* * *

_When everything around you is a mess, how can one see what is real and what is not?_

* * *

Toko leaned back, away from him, ripples of shock coursing through her.

"B-but you're… But Jasdero and Debitto…" she said slowly, knowing that she wasn't really making any sense with her words. Jasdebi waited patiently for her to collect herself.

The word he was waiting for, the one that indicated her understanding, finally slipped out of her mouth.

"C-combine…"

"Yeah. That's right."

"But how-"

Jasdebi laughed dryly. "We're kinda special, remember?"

She stared back at him for a moment before tears welled up in her eyes. Slightly surprised, he reached out, touching her cheek. The fabric of his gloves absorbed the wet tears, leaving behind only thin, salty stains on her cheeks.

A sob broke through her. "I'm so, so terrible…" she whimpered, reaching out to wrap her arms around Jasdebi. He started, looking concerned. Since when had she been like this?

"What are you talking about? You're not terrible." he assured her, giving her his own embrace.

"No! I'm horrible! I said… I told them bo- told you both… that I loved someone else…" she yelled, her voice rising with hysteria.

Jasdebi swallowed. "What… What are you getting at?" he asked.

He felt her grip on him tighten, and her voice was layered with horror. "I told you that I loved someone else… when it was you I loved the whole time… I-I hurt you… I hurt both of you…"

A few seconds passed before he understood.

"Wait, _me_? You were talking about _me_?"

Toko slowly nodded. How was this possible? She'd never seen him before! Well, except for a few quick glances, but still…

"I… don't really understand." Jasdebi said. "How could you… I mean… When did you see me? I tried to be so careful about revealing myself to you." he said slowly.

Toko pulled away a bit. "I… thought I was dreaming. But after it happened more than once… And what with everything else going on… I started to believe that everything I thought I was dreaming, was real." She looked up at him. "And I was right, right?"

Before Toko realized what he was doing, he had pulled her close to him, sighing with relief.

"So you do love me… both of us…" he said slowly, his eye closed. "Somehow, I'm really… happy. I wish I had found out somewhere not as depressing as this place."

She nodded. "Ah…" she stopped, biting her lip.

Jasdebi opened his eye, understanding. "Jasdebi. I'm called Jasdebi."

"Jasdebi…"

His name spoken from her lips, without fear but with _love_. He would have kissed her then and there, but unfortunately, there were more important things at hand.

He stood up, taking her with him. She wobbled a bit on her feet, clinging to his arm, and as he watched her, horror flooded over her face as she remembered why she was here in the first place. He could only distract her for so long.

"Ca-"

"Yeah, I know. Let's go save Cassie."

* * *

_How can we advance to the future if we are stuck dwelling on the past?_

* * *

The scene laid out before them, like some sick and twisted play preformed by a possessed Shakespeare. Akuma flew, ran, floated past, ignoring the Noah and the human.

The door to Cassie's house hung on its hinges, barely clinging to the door frame. The inside was no better. This place didn't even resemble a home anymore. This place was a grave.

It was Toko who entered first, covering her mouth and nose with the sleeve of her shirt. Jasdebi second, one hand resting on the shoulder of the distraught girl.

There was no sign of the girl's friend.

Of course, that didn't mean she was… dead. He would have voiced this, but his voice seemed to be missing. He would only stare at Toko sadly as her eyes scanned the wreckage.

"Cassie…"

"I'm sorry, Toko."

He let go of her as she ventured further inside, searching now. A table was kicked aside, doors opened, any hiding places searched.

Had this all been in vain?

She returned to him, defeated. He held her as she cried, silently, those tears shed for the death of humans, for one human in particular.

_Would she cry like this if he were to die?_

"Hey, Jasdebi, what are you doing here?"

The voice startled the pair. Jasdebi whirled around, golden eye burning, only to meet another pair like his own.

"Tyki?"

Toko's eyes widened. "T-Tyki! You shouldn't be-" she cut off, seeing and realizing. He was the same as Jasdebi. Maybe this was making a little more sense. Or maybe not. Nothing really made sense anymore.

Tyki, always the gentleman, tipped his hat slightly, then turned around and moved to the side, letting another figure into the line of sight of Jasdebi and Toko.

Toko screamed.

"Cassie!" she cried, running to embrace her battered and bruised, yet alive and intact, friend. "Oh God, you're okay!"

Cassie's arms slowly reached around to hug Toko. Her face reflected horror, fear, but also a bit of relief.

"Toko, you're okay…" she whispered, her voice hoarse. "How…"

"Jasdebi." Toko said, turning around to look at the Noah, who only stared back, feeling a bit awkward. Tyki was eyeing him strangely too.

"What?" he asked, annoyed, when his Noah superior continued to stare.

Tyki shrugged. "Just wondering what you're doing like that." he said, indicating to his combined form. Jasdebi flinched inwardly. He had some explaining to do.

But not now.

"Toko, my father, is he here? Is he okay?" Jasdebi heard Cassie whispering franticly. He looked to Tyki for understanding.

"She wanted to come back for her father." Tyki said with another shrug. "I thought I'd be nice and save her, since she's your girlfriend's best friend. But she insisted on coming back."

With a small glance back at him, Toko left with Cassie to search all of the rooms again. Jasdebi stared after her, worry painted all over his face.

"It's fine, I've told the akuma to stay away from here." Tyki said. "More importantly, I think there's something you should have noticed by now.

Jasdebi groaned. "Oh, cut it with being so mysterious. What is it?"

Tyki took his time responding as he reached his pockets for a cigarette. He cursed as he found none. "The Innocence, morons. It's here. You should have felt it by now."

The younger Noah opened his mouth to respond to the insult, but stopped. Tyki was right. He _could_ feel it.

His thought were interrupted by a scream from upstairs.

"Toko!" Jasdebi yelled without thinking, sprinting to the stairs as Tyki finally found and lit his cancer stick.

"… Idiots. I told you not to get too attached to anything."

* * *

"Father!" Cassie yelled, as Jasdebi ran into the room, searching for Toko. Not realizing that neither was really in any danger, he wrapped his arms around Toko, shielding her from danger that wasn't really there.

She gave him a confused look. "Jasdebi, wh-what are you doing?"

He blinked, finally taking time to look around.

As he did, his blood turned to ice in his veins.

It was _him_. That man from back in the memory of the twins. The one who had condemned them, chased them, tried to kill them.

And the cube of Innocence hung around his neck.

Cassie was knelt over him. Something clicked in Jasdebi's head. He was Cassie's father. _This monster_. And he had what he had been looking for all along.

He was easy prey. His limbs were broken and bleeding. Feeble breath made its way in and out of his lungs. Everything about him screamed 'weak', 'helpless', 'pathetic'.

"Cassie…" the monster choked out, reaching for the girl. The blond let out a sob, taking his bloody hands in hers.

"It's okay, father… We'll get you out of here. Everything is going to be okay." she assured him. Assured herself.

Everything was _not_ going to be okay.

The Noah took a step forward, letting go of Toko. Fury was blinding him, moving him like a puppet on strings. This man had to die. This _monster_, who had wrongly accused him of being so, _had to die_.

"_You_." he hissed out through clenched teeth. All eyes turned to him, every pair as shocked as the next.

Toko was the first to understand. "Wait, Jasdebi! Don't!" she grabbed his arm, but he easily shook her off, rounding on her with the fury meant for his would-be murderer.

"You _know_ what he tried to do to me! You of all people should understand! I'm going to kill this sick bastard! And I don't want _you_ trying to stop me!"

Toko backed away, shock clear on her face. She had been stupid to think he wouldn't still lash out at her. She should understand. She should hate him just as much as he did. He turned away, ignoring her for the moment. He would deal with her and her tears later.

He easily tossed Cassie aside, though he didn't do it too hard as to hurt her. He had enough sense left in him to hold back a bit. Now it was just him, and her father, who seemed to have guessed by now who and _what_ he was.

"I thought we… I… we got rid of you…" he whispered, then hung his head as he was struck by a fit of coughing. He was dying already. Blood exited his mouth as he coughed, splattering in a lovely red pattern on the already bloody floor.

Jasdebi sneered, his truly insane side starting to show. "You'll have to do a lot more than that to get rid of me. Now look what you've done? Because you couldn't kill me back then, I get the pleasure of killing you now."

Cassie screamed, running towards him. With barely a flicker of movement, she was restrained by powerful locks of hair, struggling but failing to be free.

Jasdebi sighed. "But you know, this is no fun. You're gonna die anyway. Maybe I should just take that nice little trinket around your neck and leave you here."

Any color remaining drained from the man's face. "N-no, this is-"

"Oh, I have a better idea! I'll take the Innocence, destroy it, and then destroy you." he interrupted him, his voice cheerful. Another lock of hair darted out, grabbing the Innocence and ripping it from the thread that hung it around the dying man's neck.

And finally, he had the damn thing in his hands. After all this searching, he'd done it. A little too much work for one little cube, but maybe it was worth it.

He grinned down at his enemy God's treasured weapon. "Bye-bye."

The Innocence flashed green in his hands as he begun the destruction, and Toko cried out again, this time locking her arms around his waist. He didn't stop her; the image of the Innocence crumbling in his hands made him nearly oblivious to everything else. This feeling, this happiness that spread through him whenever he destroyed one of these things… could easily be compared to the feelings of a junkie after going a month without a fix, and finally getting his hands on a whole load of drugs. This _high_ had him grinning like a madman.

Until the light faded, and his real senses returned to him, replacing his insane grin with a look of horror.

Toko was sobbing into the back of his shirt, terrified to let go and yet terrified to be near him. His Noah instinct had nearly driven him _mad_. Insane enough to yell at her, hurt her even.

He took a shaky breath, the Innocence dust slipping from his hands as he moved them to rest over hers, which were clinging to his front.

"Toko, I'm so sorry… I don't know-" he stopped. He did know. "I… I didn't mean to do that. I couldn't stop it."

How could he make her understand? That being a Noah, these things were unavoidable. When confronted with Innocence, he had to destroy it. When meeting an exorcist, he had to kill them. There was no avoiding these things. His Noah genes and memories forced him to, and anything that got in his way would be pushed aside.

He must have let go of Cassie without realizing it, because she had thrown herself between him and her father. Brave girl, he thought. He no longer cared for the man. He had to stop dwelling on the past and move on.

"Come on, Toko, we have to get out of here…" he murmured. "You're still in danger."

This seemed to surprise both Toko and Cassie.

"You're not going to-" Cassie started, but Jasdebi shook his head.

"Try and get yourselves away from here. If you can make it out of the village, you'll be safe." Jasdebi said as Toko slipped her arms away from him, taking a few steps back. Cassie's father eyed him with shock and suspicion.

"Why are you helping us?" he asked in a wheezy voice, his throat slightly clotted with blood. Jasdebi just shrugged.

"I guess I don't hate humans as much anymore. After all," he turned around to face Toko, who still looked worried and afraid. He tilted her head up towards him, gently brushing his lips over hers.

He pulled back, smiling. "After all, I'm in love with one."

* * *

Crazy Jasdebi is crazy. -yawns-

Sleep time.


	26. At a Day's End

I beg your forgiveness for the lateness of this chapter. Please understand that I have a life and was therefore unable to write at all these past weeks. With my job, school, family problems, and more, I've barely had enough time to think and sleep, let alone write fanfiction.

So I've finally sat down with some extra time and written this; the last chapter of Bound by Bonds.

Yes, you heard me right. This is the last chapter. After this, the series will continue in the second instalment, which will be titled Trapped by Bonds. I'll be taking a break from writing to sort out life issues and to plan out this next part, and then I'll begin writing it. So wait patiently, people.

I am also sorry that this chapter is so short. Think of it more as a closing chapter, just to wrap some things up.

So, without further ado, the last chapter. (Followed by the disclaimer.)

**Disclaimer:** It's no different from the rest. I do not and never will own D.gray-man.

* * *

The carriage jolted with every bump in the road, sending its two occupants jumbling around into each other inside. The female had insisted on sitting across from the male, refusing his attempts to try and comfort her, and every time a bump brought her near him, she would quickly regain herself and move away from him.

He knew this was all his fault, for being careless, for letting his Noah get out of control. She was still sulking. Or maybe frightened. It was hard to tell, since she was ignoring him. And she hadn't been too happy about the kiss either.

Of course, now he realized that she had allowed him to be close to her earlier only because of her shock. She had not thought to protest at the time. But by now that shock had worn off, and she was back to being her usually, pissy self, much to his annoyance and disappointment.

She had pushed away immediately after their lips had met, pointing out that there were more important things to attend to, and he had grudgingly agreed. To his surprise, she already had a plan to get everyone out.

Tyki was to escort Cassie and her father out in one carriage, while he and Toko, with the help of the small akuma girl who he had earned the loyalty of, took another. They were to take different routes, as two carriages traveling on the same road at the same time would be more likely to draw akuma attention.

He had almost wanted to laugh when he realized that Cassie's gaze, though still showing concern for her father, seemed to be lingering on Tyki a bit more than it should have been.

They had agreed to meet up in the next town, a little more than three hours away by carriage. Cassie had family there where they could stay, and would hopefully be safe. The mission here had been completed and the akuma had no more reason to stay.

He turned his attention back to the girl. She had drawn her legs up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them, as she stared at the shaking floor. A long, bleeding cut scarred her leg where she had tripped and collided with sharp, broken metal as they had left Cassie's broken home. She ignored it like she ignored everything else, enduring whatever physical, mental, and emotional pain that might be plaguing her.

Enough.

He mentally called for the akuma child to stop the carriage, and as it slowed, Toko's attention was finally caught.

"Why are we stopping?" she asked, her voice sounding dead. She must be exhausted, but she wasn't giving in to sleep yet.

"Need to do something quick." Jasdebi replied, shrugging off her question as if it were nothing. If this bothered her, she didn't show it, as he exited the battered carriage.

He might as well rid her of one of her worries.

* * *

He had said he would be quick, but he had lied.

Toko sat there, shivering from both the cold night and her apprehension, waiting for him to return. Perhaps her sense of time had been messed with, but as time grew on and he did not return, she grew anxious.

He wouldn't abandon her, would he?

She closed her eyes, trying to rid herself of her panic. No, she knew he wouldn't leave her. Right? Right…

A sudden explosion from somewhere outside shook the carriage, sending Toko toppling to the floor. She pulled herself up, looking alarmed. Were they under attack? Had the akuma chased them? She was just about to throw herself out of the door when it was opened, and she nearly collided with the person entering.

She had been hoping, expecting to see Jasdebi.

Instead, the akuma girl, looking just as alarmed as Toko was, entered.

Toko backed away as the girl in the human disguise sat across from her. Jasdebi had quickly explained what akuma were, machines made of human souls, and what they did; senselessly kill. So of course she was cautious of this seemingly innocent girl, even though she had assured to them that if Jasdebi wanted Toko kept alive, she would not harm her.

"More akuma have come." the girl explained, confirming Toko's fear. "Noah-sama told me to keep you inside here."

"What are they doing here?" Toko asked, moving aside the curtains to try and see what was going on outside. She saw nothing.

"Probably to speak to him about the mission." The girl said slowly, wondering how much she could reveal. "It's my two partners, and one is a level three, so I hope things don't go badly…"

Toko turned her attention to her, eyes wide with alarm. "Level three? That does that mean? Is he in danger or something?"

"Level three is… Well, stronger. I'm level two, but the difference between level two and three is huge." she explained. "But there's no way one could take out a Noah…"

Toko shuddered. "Noah? You keep saying that. I don't understand. What is a Noah?"

The akuma was silent for a moment. "I don't know if he will want me telling you…" she said uncertainly.

Toko snorted, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms. "I don't give a damn if he wants me to know or not. _I_ want to know. And if he keeps keeping secrets from me, I swear I'll… I'll…" she couldn't think of a good enough threat, "I'll so something very nasty and he won't like it one bit."

The girl looked surprised, and then a hint of a smile crossed her lips. "You're a strange human."

Toko was about to respond when the girl's eyes went blank, and she turned her sightless gaze at the door, cocking her head to the side as if listening to something. Before Toko could asked what was going on, she stood up and opened the door.

"Time to move again." she said quickly, her eyes returning to normal. "Noah-sama will be back soon."

She shut the door behind her, leaving Toko alone again.

* * *

She looked surprised when they entered again.

Jasdero threw the door open first, and practically flung himself at the girl, which earned a snicker from Debitto, who entered after. No sooner had they both gotten in and closed the door, the carriage had begun its journey again, now with three occupants instead of two, though there had not really been any addition to it.

They were both silent as they waited for her to recover and say something, but she was stubborn and was as quiet as they were, until Debitto had had enough of it.

"What, you're not gonna say hello?" he asked, trying to start the mood out light. It might have worked to a certain degree, as Toko, who had been rather stiff as Jasdero hugged her, seemed to soften a bit.

"You're that picky?" she asked, giving him a roll of her eyes, "_Hello_ then. Welcome back."

"We weren't gone long." Debitto said with a shrug, leaning back and stretching.

This seemed to be the wrong thing to say. Her gaze turned into a glare. "Yes, you were. I was worried! And then that akuma said that there were more out there… stronger ones…"

The mood darkened. Jasdero let go of her, looking at the floor, while Debitto rubbed his arms uncomfortably.

"It said that much?" Debitto asked, looking across at her.

"Yeah. And I'd like for you to explain to me what the hell a _Noah_ is."

They both froze.

"You don't need to know-"

"Yes, I damn well need to know, and you _will_ tell me." she all but snarled, startling them both.

"You sure… you want to know?" Debitto asked after a moment, while Jasdero looked up uncertainly.

She stopped, her temper quickly dying down. "Yeah. I really want to know. About all of this." she sighed. "Could you maybe… start at the beginning?"

So they did.

Debitto took a deep breath, readying himself for the plunge, while Jasdero leaned against the girl, getting comfortable.

"It all began with this guy named Noah…"

* * *

Some thank-yous are in order.

To every person who ever reviewed: You people are amazing! Half the time I was pushing myself to write the chapter just so I could read your responses on it. I'm so happy that people actually like this story, and want it to continue. Again, thanks a ton!

To everyone on dA! I seriously love all of you to death. (But please don't die on me.) I love talking to you guys and probably wouldn't have been so motivated if you hadn't talked about liking this story so much! And to anyone who ever did art of Toko, you deserve a nice, huge metal or something!

And basically, to everyone who has ever read the story. Thank you!

- Hana


End file.
